This year the Gatehouse Theatre in Stafford are taking us to the land of giants, beanstalks, and magic harps.

When Jack is tricked in to selling his beloved pet cow for a bag of worthless beans it looks as though all hope of paying off his family’s debts are lost. That is, until the village awakes to a giant beanstalk and a means to defeat the terrible giant, who has been picking the villagers off one by one as his tasty snacks.

What exactly will they find at the top? And will the giant’s evil minion Poison Ivy stop them in their tracks?

This production is clearly the full package from start to finish, beautiful costumes, delightful set design, flawless sound (Kate Harvey) and lighting (Barry Smith) and pleasing choreography (Verity Bray).

Written by Eric Potts and directed by Richard Cheshire, the script seems fresh, with new jokes delivered brilliantly by all cast members and songs chosen to complement the story (Miles Russell as Musical Arranger and Clive Fishlock as Musical Director).

Wendy Abraham as Fairy Faraway shows off her talents with a great singing voice and flawless interaction with the audience. Her interfaces with Theo the Mouse are a nice touch for all ages and provide some great comedy moments.

Sophie Kandola as Jill and Ollie Hart-Bradford as Jack are a strong love interest and immediately likeable in these roles. Mark Rhodes returns as Larry Trot and provides some great laughs, appearing completely at home on the Gatehouse’s stage, alongside David Phipps-Davis, who also returns, as Dame Tilly Trot, with some great traditional Dames costumes and brilliant comic delivery of Pott’s script.

This is an all-round, delightful production full of belly laughs! One to watch this panto season.

This show was reviewed on the 13th December 2024 at the Gatehouse Theatre, Stafford where it runs until the 5th January 2025.  Tickets available here: Jack and The Beanstalk – Stafford Gatehouse Theatre

Review written by Rachel Louise Martin

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