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Wednesday, 14 July 2021

COMING HOME: Christopher Tendai, last seen in Matilda at the Cambridge Theatre and Artistic Director of Dance Company CTC

Pocket Size Theatre and Liza Heinrichs (Captured by Liz) have teamed up again and created our new series 'Coming Home'. In this new piece, we look at the reopening of Theatres in London and around the country and celebrate our industry coming back. We got together some performers who will be some of the first to return to theatres and created this piece to bring some positivity to the theatre industry which has been through one of the toughest years in our lifetime. Whilst it is important to acknowledge the hardships we've all gone through, it's important we pull together as a community and celebrate our beloved industry finally coming back! 

An up and coming choreographer and creative himself, as well as an accomplished West End performer, Christopher Tendai was appearing in the London production of Matilda at the Cambridge Theatre. Appearing in the ensemble and covering the role of Rudolpho before the theatres shut their doors back in March 2020. Over the pandemic, he has been keeping himself very productive with his creative work but he also went on to appear in the National Theatres pantomime, Dick Whittington, in December. He was the Dance Captain and Swing on the show but the run was short-lived due to London being moved into tier 4. 

After Matilda and Dick Whittington being cut short for Christopher, he has been through his fair share of disappointments through this but he remains positive, telling us that if he could give out a piece of advice to people it would be “to take each day at a time. Don’t beat yourself up if your body takes longer to get back to where it was. We have all suffered trauma over this pandemic so make sure to be kind to yourself.” 
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Saturday, 26 December 2020

REVIEW: Dick Whittington at the National Theatre (Online)


There are now eighty Pantomimes available online according to the British Theatre Guide website competing for our viewing time at home and targeting the three million ticket buyers who usually see a live pantomime each Christmas. Many charge a fee to watch or request a donation and those funds are so important to these venues for their survival until next year's Pantomime. With the cancellation of so many Pantomimes this year the National Theatre decided to put on its own version which, when London went into Tier 3/4 Lockdown, was forced to close and a captured preview is now available free of charge for a short period. It is prefaced with an appeal to donate or buy tickets in 2021 for the other affected venues but should the significant resources on display at the NT compete against the multitude of online Pantomimes that seek our attention and funds? Indeed should public funds be used at all to create a show competing with them? The answer must be that they need to do something different and raise the bar to justify the competition.

The NT has restaged the Lyric Hammersmith's version of Dick Whittington in the round in a socially distanced way which creates the feel of an expensive circus ring with traps and lights embedded in the floor. It is a modern retelling of the usual rags to riches story with only the occasional double entendre. Indeed in Sheffield venues Damian's PopUp Panto, also available online for a fee, it defines the essence of Pantomime as "pure joy, quirky humour, warm energy, familiarity and nostalgic". The NT version seems devoid of this essence, the characters are overly intense and serious, almost smug and self-satisfied, and the production lacks warmth and was conceived in a London bubble.
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Thursday, 4 January 2018

Pocket Size Theatre 5th Anniversary: Our Top 10 News Stories!

Our News features and articles are one of our most popular things to post, our readers love being kept in the loop and we've been known to break the news first for quite a few big things! Heres a list of our most popular news articles, some of them surprised us! Follow us on twitter to keep up to date with all of our future news posts! 


"Sheena Easton - the Grammy Award winning artist who has sold over 20 million records around the world - is to make her West End debut in the forthcoming production of 42nd Street. Easton, who remains the only artist in history to have top five records on five major Billboard charts.... " 




"Selladoor Worldwide is delighted to announce that they will tour a brand-new production of The Producers this Autumn. The laugh-out-loud musical spectacle opens at Shanghai Culture Square, prior to a 14 week tour of China. This tour marks Selladoor Worldwide’s 8th International tour since 2014..."





"The Union Theatre is thrilled to announce the cast for the upcoming production of Irving Berlin's ANNIE GET YOUR GUN. GEMMA MACLEAN will head up the company as the infamous, sharp shooting Annie Oakley. Gemma most recently starred as Liz Imbrie in "High Society" at Sonning Mill not long..."


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Tuesday, 2 January 2018

PANTOMIME REVIEW: Dick Whittington at the London Palladium


Last year Cinderella at the London Palladium raised the bar on the scale and production values invested in Christmas Pantomime in a way that few venues could compete with and set the challenge for Michael Harrison in directing this year production of Dick Whittington. 

  
You can literally see the time and effort invested in this year's show to make it feel bigger and better than last year with nine principles in the cast, twelve in the band and an ensemble of twenty two, all dressed in sumptuous costumes throughout by Ron Briggs with spectacular effects.

The Twins FX team create the huge special effects that are a signature of Qdos pantomimes and this show opens with a ridiculous over the top string of London buses carrying the shows title and then sets the tale in context with a giant rat voiced by last year's star Paul O'Grady. You can imagine someone challenging them to be bigger this year and suggesting flying a London double bus over the audience which they duly oblige at the end of act 1.
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Monday, 13 November 2017

Further casting announced for Dick Whittington at the London Palladium this Christmas



Dick Whittington is produced by Nick Thomas and Michael Harrison for Qdos Entertainment, the team behind last year’s twice Olivier-nominated London Palladium production of Cinderella, which broke box office records for the highest grossing week in West End theatre history. Dick Whittington is written by Alan McHugh, directed by Michael Harrison, choreographed by Karen Bruce with musical supervision and orchestrations by Gary Hind, lighting by Ben Cracknell, set designs by Ian Westbrook, 3D Creations, costumes by Hugh Durrant, visual special effects by The Twins FX, projection design by Duncan McLean and sound design by Gareth Owen. 

Emma Williams and Lukus Alexander complete the principle casting for the London Palladium Pantomime this Christmas playing the role of Alice Fitzwarren and Eileen the Cat respectively. They will join the previously announced Julian Clary (Spirit of the Bells),Elaine Paige (Queen Rat), Ashley Banjo (The Sultan) and Diversity (The Sultan’s Special Advisors), Paul Zerdin (Idle Jack), Nigel Havers (Captain Nigel), Gary Wilmot (Sarah the Cook) and Charlie Stemp (Dick Whittington).
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Friday, 1 September 2017

Final casting announced for DICK WHITTINGTON at the London Palladium


Emma Williams and Lukus Alexander complete the principle casting for the London Palladium Pantomime this Christmas playing the role of Alice Fitzwarren and Eileen the Cat respectively. They will join the previously announced Julian Clary (Spirit of the Bells),Elaine Paige (Queen Rat), Ashley Banjo (The Sultan) and Diversity (The Sultan’s Special Advisors), Paul Zerdin (Idle Jack), Nigel Havers (Captain Nigel), Gary Wilmot (Sarah the Cook) and Charlie Stemp (Dick Whittington). 

Dick Whittington will run at the London Palladium for five weeks only over the festive season from Saturday 9 December 2017 to Sunday 14 January 2018, with press night on Wednesday 13 December 2017 at 7pm.

Dick Whittington is produced by Nick Thomas and Michael Harrison for Qdos Entertainment, the team behind last year’s twice Olivier-nominated London Palladium production of Cinderella, which broke box office records for the highest grossing week in West End theatre history. Dick Whittington is written by Alan McHugh, directed by Michael Harrison, choreographed by Karen Bruce with musical supervision and orchestrations by Gary Hind, lighting by Ben Cracknell, set designs by Ian Westbrook, 3D Creations, costumes by Hugh Durrant, visual special effects by The Twins FX, projection design by Duncan McLean and sound design by Gareth Owen. 
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