REVIEW | Sleeping Beauty Takes A Prick, Charing Cross Theatre
Jordan Stamatiadis in Sleeping Beauty Takes A Prick. Photo by Danny KaanWritten by Becky
Disclaimer: We were invited to watch this performance in return for an honest review.
Please note: This performance ontains strong sex and drug references and strong language (18+)
Sleeping Beauty Takes A Prick! is the brand new, adults-only pantomime from the team behind Above The Stag Theatre’s legendary queer Christmas shows. From brand new theatre company He’s behind you! Ltd, journey back in time to the tiny kingdom of Slutvia, where a prince searches for the boy of his dreams at his 21st birthday ball. But when he takes a prick in the palace rose garden, he magically wakes up in a modern world where palaces are run by the National Trust and the man of your dreams is somewhere on Grindr.
This adult panto is topical, current and an extremely camp night out, and I enjoyed every single minute of it! Prepare to have your sides in stitches in this nonsensical Christmas production. Not only does it have innuendos galore, it also has a big heart and profound message intertwined throughout about acceptance and not being afraid to shout about who you are, no matter who may try to bring you down, even if that is your evil uncle that comes round every Christmas!
Matthew Baldwin absolutely shines as the shows central Dame Queen Gertrude. He delivered his one-liners perfectly, throwing in some welcome improvisation that was received with enormous eruptions of laughter throughout. Nikki Biddinngton is adorable as the “Buttons style” character Myrtle, helplessly in love with the Prince she serves l, Prince Arry (Tom Mann). Another character highlight for me was Chris Lane who was the hilariously convincing panto villain of the night Prince Camembert. With his dainty mannerisms they blended perfectly to give his villain a queer twist whilst still having his evil scheme at hand.
David Shield’s extravagant set design worked wonderfully to represent the fictional town of Slutvia. For an off west-end show the production had an impressive amount of set changes and props that kept the audience engaged. This partnered well with ALL the sparkles of Sandy Lloyd’s and Robert Drapers gorgeous costume design that sometimes left little to the imagination in certain scenes!
With an original script and brand new songs written by the talented Joe Bradfield, the show has its own individual humorous flair that is definitely one of a kind for this panto season! As this is an adult only pantomime be aware of crude jokes and explicit language but these for me only added to the shock factor of the jokes and made them all the funnier. This is definitely something for those with a slightly darker sense of humor.
Although chaotic at time with the actors breaking character occasionally, that’s all part of the fun right? Sleeping Beauty Takes A Prick is a fabulously rude production, bursting at the seams with laughter and original songs and stunning sets. This is the type of show to go out with your mates and have just a right old time with a glass of your favorite christmassy beverage!
Sleeping Beauty Takes A Prick is playing at the Charing Cross Theatre until the 13th of January. Book Sleeping Beauty Takes A Prick tickets now.
