Dick Whittington made the trip from Inverurie to London at the weekend, and struck gold with a colourful pantomime for all ages. - Evening Express 14th Dec 2009

Peter Pan takes flight

December 2010

This was the year when cast, crew and audience fought their way through the snow to reach the Town Hall and would willingly have flown off to Neverland, providing it was warm and sunny. However, with the same production and design teams in charge for the third consecutive year there was no doubt of the warmth of feeling generated by the company.

Peter Pan and Wendy (Stephanie Bruce and Sophie Hamilton) flew gracefully above the stage and managed to sing at the same time. Nana (James Yule), the Doric speaking children’s nurse, flew less gracefully but nevertheless arrived in Neverland successfully. Wendy’s brothers, John (Joel Robertson / Connor McRae) and Michael (Michael Smith / Stuart Jack) accompanied them, thanks to Tinker Bell’s pixie dust. Tink was played with great panache by assistant musical director Laura Pike.

Gavin Davidson, in a change from his previous panto roles, played the dastardly Captain Hook with plenty of swash and buckle, and was assisted by his hapless first mate Smee (Richard Garden). Hook’s nemesis, the crocodile, was danced by Rachel Morgan. Hook’s pirates proved no match for the Lost Boys and good triumphed over evil as it should, leading to a return to London for Wendy and her brothers, to the amazement of their mother (Rachael Watson) who had not even missed them.

This was a rather different version of the story, with a pink crocodile which did not eat Captain Hook, and a very human Nana but it was greatly enjoyed by enthusiastic audiences.