Fasten your seatbelts for a high energy, polished, colourful production of Robin Hood at the Capitol Horsham this Christmas. We had a fantastic time last week!
The annual Capitol pantomime is always good value for a great night out and this year’s offering definitely carries on the tradition. If we weren’t clutching our sides with laughter at the non-stop jokes, we were marvelling at the frankly amazing singing and especially the harmonies when the whole cast joined in. I was blown away with their interesting take on George Ezra‘s Gold Rush Kid!
Unusually for a pantomime you could actually follow the plot! The action is non-stop with a fantastic cast who are all clearly having a lot of fun. Gina Murray’s Sheriff is a beguiling combination of intimidation and glamour but even she couldn’t stop the audience taking over with extended applause for an absolutely brilliant solo by another cast member (I won’t say which one as it’s a spoiler).
Emma Lindars reprises her narrator slot of the past few productions as the beautiful Fairy Evergreen – and, really, what a singing voice she has, featuring in a wonderful duet with Georgia Bradshaw’s lovely Maid Marian.
You can usually spot the traditional “strong” pantomime characters but this production seems to be unique in that every part seems to be equal – Will Jennings as Guy of Gisbourne has us crying with laughter with his quick asides (are they ad libbed?); Katie Pritchard does a off-the-wall version of Friar Tuck, which is amazing.
Jack North’s Little John is a more traditional character and with his quick fire wit gets the audience involved. Mark Irwin brings an air of friendly capability to his Robin Hood, the villagers will be well looked after by this guy. Last of the principals is James Camp as the Dame Daphne DuPlop with her Hyacinth Bucket take on the name and a glittering array of high camp (sorry James!) costumes.
The cast is completed by a brilliant ensemble, with pefect dance timing – and let’s not forget those lovely harmonies.
The singers were backed up by a fantastic band who are absolutely on point all the way through, and screens at the side of the stage allowed us to see them in action.
Of course with any pantomime, even the family versions, they have to be adult jokes to keep the parents’ interest. This Robin Hood does them but not in an overt way, they are subtle enough to make you giggle but not leave you squirming in front of the children. Phew!
This is a couple of hours of just pure enjoyment. You’ll come away enriched and enlivened. Do see it!
Book tickets direct on The Capitol Horsham website
