SLEEPING BEAUTY by Alan P Frayn Director – Sheryl Haydock-Howorth Friends of the Art Theatre Winter can be a dark and dreary season: after the bright lights of Christmas, we all yearn for some colour. This production of ‘Sleeping Beauty’ did just that and the costumes, supplied by Molly Limpets and organised by the wardrobe team of Alice Bowden, Hazel Bowker and Kim Cooper, were super. They were bright and sparkled. The Dame had numerous, outlandish costume changes that kept the audience engaged. This for me is one of the things I look forward too, (as well as the wit, knowing looks to the audience, ad libs, and the use of innuendo) plus the anticipation of what the Dame will appear in next. After a brief time away from pantomime and playing the dame, Darren Cooper was back as Dotty Dettol! He is so at ease playing this role and confidently delivering her to the audience. He engages so well with the actors but more crucially with the audience. Singling a man in the audience to have recurring interaction with – poor Darren (that’s the man in the audience not the actor on the Saturday matinee). Darren (Dotty) is very experienced at delivering pantomime gags and moving the scenes on when the time is right, not over-labouring any ad lib moments or prolonging the interactions with the audience. This is, in my opinion, a skill that is
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy ODU3MzQ=