By Caroline Preston, The Jarvis Jotter
I’ve got to admit, I’ve not been to a panto in a long time...perhaps I thought I was ‘too old’ maybe I thought ‘panto's are for kids...’ or ‘it will be soooo cheesy’ The last memory I have of going to see a funny live act was going back to my late teens when my Grandfather took as all along to the local circus, me and my counterpart ‘cool teenage sister’ where we spent the whole time laughing for the wrong reasons... ‘We were far too cool to enjoy a circus, pah!’ So that’s the last time ‘I’ was there anyway but now I admit, I miss those days, things really change as you get older, memories of those carefree days are now thought of very fondly.
So, when invited to come along to see #Aladdin in #Newcastle starring X-factor finalist #MarcusCollins I did have to think about it for a while, then in better judgement I thought ‘why not!’ Inviting along my husband ‘he’s also way too cool for pantomimes btw’ and my mam, dad and sister (yes the original cool one at the circus).
We all arrived at the theatre and the first thing that struck me was how lovely and friendly the staff were, armed with information and directions to our seats...but not before a visit to the bar...surprisingly no queue either and reasonable prices! Hurrah! #tyneoperahouse we salute you!
One thing, the theatre was built in 1867 and then, people were definitely smaller. Let’s just say my husband is more of a rugby player build and so we found it a little ‘snug’ but never the less we managed to sit comfortably for the show and were afforded a great view from our grand circle seats (adult ticket £24).
I’ve got to say this pantomime really changed my views of what I would have described previously as 'a panto kind of thing'. The first half afforded us all plenty of belly laughs, my favourite had to be Charlie Richmond #charlierichmond playing #WisheeWashee, honestly so funny and slapstick, that #Geordie voice just added to the hilarity! #weloveyoucharlie #pantolegend
Then there was Chris Casserly #chriscasserly as Widow Twankey, my sister actually said she cried with laughter at the ‘Mangle’ scene, one to watch out for and of course it was great to see Marcus himself back in great form in the role of the #Genie of the lamp!
I actually loved the fact we had an interval like the just like we had in my younger days... so back to the bar we went and great to have an opportunity to visit the loos without falling down the stairs in the dark!
After many more laughs and of course the ending, which I’ll not reveal...we headed to a ‘meet the cast’ opportunity. It was great to meet Marcus, such a great genuine guy who spent so much time just chatting with us about all kinds of stuff, a real pleasure to meet. I also met some of the dancers who turns out we shared some common ground, they were also ex cruise line crew, small world indeed!
I have to say before the show I was a possibly a little ‘Grinchy Grumpy’ Caroline but somehow with a bit of #panto and perhaps some of that #Genie #magic I’m flying high again just like that #magiccarpet! Thanks to #tyneoperahouse and #enchantedentertainment and of course the cast of #Aladdin for a thoroughly brilliant evening @tynetheatrepanto!
The Panto runs from Friday 6th December to Sunday 5th January 2019, for bookings visit the theatre website https://tynetheatreandoperahouse.uk/events/enchanted-entertainment-aladdin/
Caroline is a freelance writer and blogger for The Jarvis Jotter specialising in travel, food, hospitality and lifestyle writing, read more of her work here www.thejarvisjotter.co.uk/viewmywork her blog can be accessed here www.thejarvisjotter.co.uk/blog if you’d like me to blog for you, write for you or review your show, eatery, bar, hotel etc contact me at carolinepreston@thejarvisjotter.co.uk
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