Thursday 23 December 2021
Review 3 - Basingstoke Gazette
Dazzling family fun-filled festive production of Beauty and The Beast impresses at The Anvil
IT HAS been a hard time for theatres during the Covid pandemic, so I was delighted to be invited along to The Anvil to see this year’s Beauty and The Beast pantomime.
I was blown away by how beautiful the theatre in Basingstoke is. I was impressed with the foyer, which had a Christmas tree, bar and souvenir shop designed to look just like the Beasts castle.
Apart from having to wear a face-covering throughout the performance, it seemed all very normal. This was especially nice after the past couple of years and It was a joy to see the residents of Basingstoke come together to get into the festive spirit.
The production tells the story of a Prince, who is cursed to spend his days as a monster until he regains his humanity by winning a woman’s love.
The show filled me with joy from start to finish and I loved watching the fantastic duo of Polly La Plonk (played by Nick Wilton) and her son Louis (played by Chris Pizzey) who gave a hilarious performance, leaving the audience in stitches.
Meanwhile, Belle (played by Maria Coyne) had the voice of an angel as she impressed with her vocals. She captivated the audience with her stage presence from start to finish.
Joe McFadden put on an outstanding performance taking on the role of the Beast, before transforming into the Prince.
He played a convincing Beast and had a powerful stage presence and impressive vocals.
A memorable part of the show was his transformation into the Prince as the audience clapped and cheered along.
The pantomime was packed full of jokes and innuendos for adults to enjoy and even incorporated popular songs including Ed Sheeran’s Shivers.
I have to also mention the ghost scene in the haunted castle, which had children in the audience screaming “it is behind you” and “oh yes it is” as Polly La Plonk, Louis and Belle encountered a ghost.
This magical story sees Belle agreeing to stay with the Beast in return for her father, who is being held captive by the Beast. The audience watches with amazement as they fall in love and become a match made in heaven.
In a brilliant transformation scene, the Beast returns to being the Prince and the pantomime ends happily ever after.
The show is a dazzling family fun-filled festive production that is not to be missed.
Thursday 16 December 2021
Tuesday 14 December 2021
Monday 13 December 2021
Beauty & The Beast - Review 1
Beauty and The Beast at The Anvil, Basingstoke
This weekend we were invited to see Beauty and The Beast at The Anvil in Basingstoke. It’s one of our favourite theatres and we hadn’t been in so long – we were really looking forward to it.
The Anvil always has a panto – and one at Easter too – and we always really enjoy it. Before we even arrived we knew it would be family friendly and that we’d all have a great time. Plus, The Anvil is easily accessible, in the heart of Basingstoke Town Centre and with parking right next to the theatre.
We arrived just before the seating doors opened, friendly staff checked our tickets and we used the toilets and bought some drinks. The Anvil lets you preorder snacks and drinks, ready to pick up at a convenient collection point and they have a great range available – including some special Beauty and the Beast themed cocktails and mocktails too!
Beauty and The Beast started in a burst of song and disco balls, setting the scene for the rest of the show. The set was beautiful, seamlessly switching French village to castle and even a dark and spooky forest at one point.
Everyone knows the story of Beauty and the Beast and the show was in keeping with the classic tale. But, it was also classic pantomime – with Polly La Plonk, played by Nick Wilton as the classic pantomime dame and plenty of he’s behind you and oh no he isn’t, oh yes he is moments too.
The characters were fantastic. With Belle, played by Maria Coyne, and her father played by Marcus Knibbs. Their relationship is a big part of the story and they both convey so much emotion in their scenes and songs. Maria has an incredible voice and she plays Belle wonderfully.
One of our favourite characters was the over confident and loud Hugo, played by Michael Quinn, who constantly had a swarm of women following him everywhere. He spent the whole show trying to marry Belle and she spent the whole show trying to avoid him and his affections.
Many of the jokes surrounding Hugo were around his accent. Words that sounded different when said in a strong French accent that changed the whole context of what he was saying. Most of his lines got laughs from the audience – especially when he started talking about a cat in French. Chat!
Joe McFadden played Beast perfectly. He was full of angst and pent up emotion. Looked after by Polly La Plonk and her son, Louis La Plonk, played by Chris Pizzey, they make a great trio who I’m sure would have lived happily in the castle for years together – with laughter every day!
The show has laughs in every scene and Polly and Louis make a fantastic double act, bouncing off each other. We loved the jokes and there was just the right amount of innuendo – with it all going over the children’s heads.
We loved Beauty and the Beast. The cast gave the performance their all, the songs were fantastic from old classic to really modern favourites and the choreography and costumes fit the show perfectly. It was a fantastic family show that we really enjoyed and we can’t wait to go back to The Anvil to see another show soon.
Disclosure: We were invited to see this show for the purpose of this post however all opinions are my own
https://whattheredheadsaid.com/beauty-and-the-beast-at-the-anvil-basingstoke/
This weekend we were invited to see Beauty and The Beast at The Anvil in Basingstoke. It’s one of our favourite theatres and we hadn’t been in so long – we were really looking forward to it.
The Anvil always has a panto – and one at Easter too – and we always really enjoy it. Before we even arrived we knew it would be family friendly and that we’d all have a great time. Plus, The Anvil is easily accessible, in the heart of Basingstoke Town Centre and with parking right next to the theatre.
We arrived just before the seating doors opened, friendly staff checked our tickets and we used the toilets and bought some drinks. The Anvil lets you preorder snacks and drinks, ready to pick up at a convenient collection point and they have a great range available – including some special Beauty and the Beast themed cocktails and mocktails too!
Beauty and The Beast started in a burst of song and disco balls, setting the scene for the rest of the show. The set was beautiful, seamlessly switching French village to castle and even a dark and spooky forest at one point.
Everyone knows the story of Beauty and the Beast and the show was in keeping with the classic tale. But, it was also classic pantomime – with Polly La Plonk, played by Nick Wilton as the classic pantomime dame and plenty of he’s behind you and oh no he isn’t, oh yes he is moments too.
The characters were fantastic. With Belle, played by Maria Coyne, and her father played by Marcus Knibbs. Their relationship is a big part of the story and they both convey so much emotion in their scenes and songs. Maria has an incredible voice and she plays Belle wonderfully.
One of our favourite characters was the over confident and loud Hugo, played by Michael Quinn, who constantly had a swarm of women following him everywhere. He spent the whole show trying to marry Belle and she spent the whole show trying to avoid him and his affections.
Many of the jokes surrounding Hugo were around his accent. Words that sounded different when said in a strong French accent that changed the whole context of what he was saying. Most of his lines got laughs from the audience – especially when he started talking about a cat in French. Chat!
Joe McFadden played Beast perfectly. He was full of angst and pent up emotion. Looked after by Polly La Plonk and her son, Louis La Plonk, played by Chris Pizzey, they make a great trio who I’m sure would have lived happily in the castle for years together – with laughter every day!
The show has laughs in every scene and Polly and Louis make a fantastic double act, bouncing off each other. We loved the jokes and there was just the right amount of innuendo – with it all going over the children’s heads.
We loved Beauty and the Beast. The cast gave the performance their all, the songs were fantastic from old classic to really modern favourites and the choreography and costumes fit the show perfectly. It was a fantastic family show that we really enjoyed and we can’t wait to go back to The Anvil to see another show soon.
Disclosure: We were invited to see this show for the purpose of this post however all opinions are my own
https://whattheredheadsaid.com/beauty-and-the-beast-at-the-anvil-basingstoke/
Friday 3 December 2021
Hampshire Life
Featured in this month’s Hampshire Life in an article on Panto’s “Men in frocks” alongside Jack Edwards (Southsea), Craig Revel Horwood (Southampton) and Julian Eardley (Winchester)
Some may recognise Nick as the hard-nosed market inspector for Walford's Bridge Street market in EastEnders. But his latest acting offering couldn’t be further from Bob Lister’s grey suit and tie as he dons a dress and bloomers and becomes housekeeper Polly La Plonk for Beauty and the Beast at The Anvil in Basingstoke. No stranger to the pantomime, Nick remembers: ‘I did my first panto when I was 30 playing Captain’s Mate in Dick Whittington in 1987 at the Theatre Royal Plymouth; in 1990 I was Wishee Washee in Edmonton; and in 1991 the baddie in Bill Oddie’s Mother Goose at the Shaw Theatre in London. When I was 40, I had the idea of playing a panto Dame but it took three years to find someone to give me the chance. In 2000 I played Nurse Nellie in Robin Hood & The Babes in the Wood at the Salisbury Playhouse and I’ve played Dame every Christmas since - I was last at The Anvil in 2010 in Sleeping Beauty with the wonderful Wendy Craig.’
With an award-winning script, comedy routines and songs a-plenty, audiences are set for an action-packed show. Nick’s favourite routine is with fellow cast member Chris Pizzey, who plays Louis, Polly’s son, he shares: I’ve worked with Chris before so I know what “a little tinker” he is. My favourite bit is the kitchen scene where we get into a bit of state trying to bake some baguettes. Louis says: “No rest for the stupid”, Polly says: “Wicked” and Louis replies: “Cool”. I love this little exchange at the beginning of the scene - it’s such a neat joke.
All this on-stage excitement sounds exhausting and so when it comes to some r&r for Polly, Nick says: ‘I think she’d head down to Lymington harbour - she’s got an eye for the sailors. Or possibly she might take a busman’s holiday and go for afternoon tea at Highclere Castle - it would be nice to be waited on for a change.’
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