It's worth noting that before you get excited and book, there are two versions of the show. There's an all-ages performance for the family, as well as a separate adults-only version. This review covers the very adult humoured version.
Over the last two years, we've all gone a bit mad for Wicked in the cinemas, and so the team at Pleasance at The Vaults have created a truly inspired pantomime this year.
Panto has always been as camp as Christmas, but this year it's gone way over the rainbow. Wicked Witches is a show that fully shines the rest of the rainbow (rather than just being full of gay bumming jokes).
Welcome to the Borough of Oz-lington where the Good Witch, Kelly (Eleanor Burke) and the Wicked Witch, Adele (Gigi Zahir), are feuding. Dorothy ‘Dor' (Rosanna Suppa) returns back after 20 years away and reunites with Tin 2.0 (Lew Ray).
Dor might have been able to get home to Kansas if not for the Blizzard of Oz (and having sold her slippers to shoesniffer69 on eBay). Will Dor find her way back home? Will the Witches stop their fighting, and which witch is the panto villain of the show?
Dor, played by Rosanna Suppa is our non-binary hero of the show and carries the torch for celebrating queer identities. Suppa responded masterfully to audience heckling and is a fantastic mover on stage.
Burke, who plays our Good Witch, has the most exquisite facial expressions, a shrill and squeaky voice you'd expect, and a fabulous pair that are fully on display. She was a triumph and the perfect person to cast for this role. She effortlessly swings between good and wicked. Her rendition of ‘Fabulous' from High School Musical 2 out-pinked and outshone even Sharpay Evans herself.
Zahir as Adele is the perfect opposite, with a wonderful vocal tone. As soon as the show opens, she shines whilst spitting curses and hollering Adele numbers wherever she can.
The headline news for this show is the two on-screen appearances. We first meet Jeremy Cobyn as the Wizard of Oz-lington. He does a decent job, and it's wonderful to see someone with such a high profile in the local area highlight the theatre – art and culture are something we must always protect.
After the interval, we see Sir Ian McKellen as Toto the dog. McKellen has plenty of experience playing a four-legged feline in Cats, and his scathing sass about James Corden gets a whooping cheer from the audience.
Pantos are often a reflection of the year just been, and with Labubu, K-Pop Demon Hunters, and the Jet2 Holiday advert, the show captures them all hilariously. On the other side, it goes deep enough to poke fun at Trump's wall, our political split as a country, and the fact that it's not that hard to understand that nobody is a binary; we're all somewhere in between.
The show doesn't shy away from race when discussing Adele's green skin colour. It's a show full of confidence to tackle topics like race, ADHD, and identity with strong humour.
There's a lot more to praise about this show: the audience interaction is both nostalgic and fresh; costumes and makeup are excellent, with great details added; our on-stage manager Scarecrow does an excellent job of keeping the production running smoothly.
For a wicked and wonderful show, head on over to Oz-lington.
Review: James Dix Photos: Ella Carmen Dale