REVIEW: The Color Purple at the Birmingham Hippodrome

After a praised revival by the Leicester Curve in 2019, The Colour Purple has returned post-pandemic, co-produced with the Birmingham Hippodrome. Finally, the UK is being blessed with a production that hits a tidal wave of raw human emotion and celebrates the beauty and strength of female empowerment.

As I enter the theatre, a buzz of excitement fills each level as the audience takes their seat. A diverse variety of theatre-goers assemble as the pre-show chatter commences; an assortment of comments about the show, fans of the novel, film, musical and groups of individuals who have no idea what to expect.

REVIEW: Goldilocks and the Three Bears at the Birmingham Hippodrome

As the end of January approached the 2021/22 Pantomime season draws to a close and Producers across the UK reflect on the extraordinary challenges, they have faced in making sure the “show must go on”. Changing Government regulations, audiences’ reluctance to go to theatre with a mask on and some worried about going if others don’t wear them, and of course Covid hitting cast and crew requiring understudies to step up to fill the gaps or rapid reblocking or rehearsing replacements. It will be a season that they don’t forget, and we hope the financial implications of cancelled shows will not hit regional theatre in a terminal way.

Birmingham Hippodrome’s Goldilocks and the Three bears did not escape these challenges. Traditionally one of the last to open on 18th December and one of last to close, in its final week to its last performances on 30th January it looked like a full cast and ensemble. Jonny Mac had been brought in from Scotland to cover for Matt Slack early in the run and at times many of the Ensemble were off, so we were lucky to see the show as intended on free Newspaper promotional tickets. Indeed, it was unusual to see so many seats in this wonderful venue empty suggesting it too has seen tickets sales hit, with the Programme cost cut from £5 to £2 to clear stocks another sign of lower sales than usual.

It's Behind You! Pocket Size Theatres Pantomime Preview 2021

The Pantomime website ITSBEHINDYOU.COM - The Magic of Pantomime diary lists around 250 professional pantomimes around the country this year, after last year pandemic disrupted year which shut the few Pantomimes that actually opened soon in their runs, so there is certain to be a show near you. This family Christmas treat will hopefully bounce back bigger and better than ever (Oh Yes it will) and give the families a much-needed, feel-good uplift around Christmas. How do you choose which to go to? The obvious choice is the one nearest to your family but if you are willing to travel a little further there are many excellent shows that will make the journey worthwhile. 

Look for past winners of the Pantomime Awards or well-known stars who you or your children like or choose the larger venues where the on-stage budgets are bigger and the shows more spectacular. Many of the smaller venues still produce great shows on a fraction of those budgets. There are so many to pick from but here are some of my personal favourites from around the country.

In Scotland, the King's Theatre in Edinburgh has Sleeping Beauty with the irrepressible Allan Stewart as Auntie May and the King's Theatre in Glasgow has Cinderella with Elaine C Smith (past winner of Best Fairy 2018). Both venues are past winners of Best Pantomime in 2019. These two shows revolve entirely around these two Scottish pantomime superstars.

The Past, Present & Future of Pantomime

Pantomime is often a child's first experience of live theatre and therefore it plays a critical role in establishing a young person’s love of live entertainment. It is also a unique shared experience as the whole family go together and the genre is built on audience interactions and traditional calls and shout outs. Sadly, this year there will not be the usual hundreds of venues staging a pantomime, and thousands of actors and technical staff will be unemployed. Only a few have survived the Pandemic and even then, in an abbreviated form, led by Qdos with Lottery funded shows in large venues to ensure they are Covid safe.

Qdos has established itself as the leading Pantomime production company usually has 35 productions each year including the two leading venues of the London Palladium and Birmingham Hippodrome but there are many other companies who usually produce multiple productions (UK productions, Imagine, PHA, Jordan and Evolution) and lots of “in house” productions. All of them are built on the same traditional elements that have made the genre so established over the last two hundred years.

REVIEW: Beautiful: The Carol King Musical at the Birmingham Hippodrome

A generation of girls grew up enjoying the music of Carole King and in particular her hugely successful 1971 album "Tapestry" which was listed on the Billboard 200 for over 300 weeks, was for many years the longest run by a female solo artist and has been ranked as one of the best ever albums. This slick and enjoyable production starts and ends with her first solo concert at Carnegie Hall in June 1971 and in between traces her story from her first song writing hit in 1960 for The Shirelles, "Will you love me tomorrow" through her first marriage to her song writing partner Gerry Goffin until she was confident to perform her work herself. It is a fascinating back story to the album that made her name and we learn so much about her emotional journey, the sixties writing factories and are surprised by the hits she wrote for other artistes before she had the courage to perform herself.

The core of the production is the rivalry between King/Goffin duo and Weill/Mann at Aldon Music where Donnie Kirshner regularly sets the challenge to give him a hit song for an artist by the following day. This competitive battle between the two couples defines their relationship and ultimately creates a loyal friendship between King and Weill. The production features strong performances from the leads with Kane Parry capturing the unfaithful Goffin, Matthew Gonsalves the infatuated Mann and Adam Howden the demanding Kirshner . However it is the two female leads that steal the show. Amy Richardson is a joy as Weill, putting her career before her love, with great energy and comedy but it is Bronte Barbe as King who is the star.