... Jack and the Beanstalk Bexhill-on-Sea The script at the De La Warr Pavilion does not sparkle with topicality, bearing in mind that youngsters are so well-informed in this age of communications. Traditional is good but today is also relevant. Ted Rogers as Simon, Johnny Dallas as Dame Vera Trot and the enthusiastic children in the audi ence are the strengths of the show. Even so, the company ...

... Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Camberley Here is a spot-on panto at the ArtsLink, carefully directed by Jonathan Linsley and charmingly choreographed by Jackie and Jenny Elsden. It strikes the right balance between story values and custom ary panto routines, and all the musi cal numbers are in the right place which may seem elementary but is not always the case. Panto veteran Peter John is ...

... The Wizard of Oz Aldershot Take a good dose of pantomime slapstick and a well-loved story and mix them together in true style. Robert Hopkins and Ricky Diamond are not only proficient children's entertainers, but also the resident panto hosts at the Princes Hall and their style to encourage the highest level of audience participa tion works wonders. There is never a dull moment when they ...

... Sleeping Beauty Sunderland The problem with this production at the Empire is that it has got no per sonality. Star names it might have, but what it lacks is someone to give it that flash of inspiration and lift it out of its lethargy. With a slow start, the only thing to get excited about in the first half is the evil, wicked Carabosse (Kate Copstick). The rest of the action is eminently ...

... Cinderella Weston-super-Mare Paul Holman Associates' third annual Christmas offering at the Playhouse is the most spectacular yet. Robert Marlowe's production decorates the traditional pan tomime with gorgeous costumes and scenery, a generous line-up of dancers, a delightful transformation scene involving genuine Shetland ponies and Fantaisie en Noir puppets, plus Postman Pat for good measure. ...

... Alice in Wonderland Wellingborough Directed by Daniel Austin and the Castle's sixth Christmas show, this production is very much in the shadow of its predeccessors. In short, the package is a mass of unintelligible shouting, huge amounts of charging about the stage for no rhyme or reason, and scenery which looks like a Blue Peter reject and that, I have to admit, is being kind. This venue has ...

... Hansel and Gretel Paisley Where did those pesky Florida ballot papers go? Easy. Nasty old Aunt Agatha (Elaine Ellis) stole them, just as she stole the Queen's baby son. The child will grow up to be TP (the superb Jimmy Harrison), but he wouldn't have discovered his her itage without the help of Hansel and Gretel, PACE Theatre Company graduates Andrew Howie and Eilidh McCormick, giving warm and ...

... Santa and Nicolas Stirling It is Christmas Eve and Nicolas is bored with being left on his own to watch telly. He is fed up with his parents and wants a ski-board so he can play in the snow even if it only exists on the TV screen and in his imagination. So when he wakes up in the middle of the night, to find a strange girl in the sitting room who tells him how Santa is fed up because no one ...

... Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Worthing What are the basic ingrediants required to make a good pan tomime? Music, mayhem and magic, plus glittering costumes, sparkling sets and a host of charac ters ranging from the bizarre to the beautiful and at the Pavilion Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs pretty much had the lot. Show creators Hammond Productions manages to sqeeze all the necessary ...

... The Snow Queen Hounslow Parasol's Richard Gill has adapted Hans Christian Andersen's tale of devilry and shattered glass as an adventure story for younger audiences, filling the eye with images of prancing white wolves, a giant Swan and a palace of glittering danger at the journey's end. but instead of breaking into dangerous splinters the Snow Queen's distorting mirror becomes an obsession ...

... Little Red Riding Hood Rotherham The spirit of pantomime is alive and well at the Civic Theatre, where Duggie Chapman's show is delight ing audiences, with local favourite Barry Cheese making a most appealing Muddles, gleeful, full of life and fun, yet sympathetic. Personable Rob Malone plays Prince with a light touch, with Ann Micklethwaite as a sweet Red Riding Hood, equipped with a strong ...

... Dick Whittington Bishops Stortford Rhodes Centre's pantomime could be called plucky, courageous even, but not spectacular. A young cast tries hard to make David Baldock's script as funny as possible but director Lucy O'Hare allows her charges to screech almost continuously. Glyn Trefor-Jones tries hard to bring a simple sincerity to the role and he sings well. Nicole Freeman- Wright as his Cat ...