★★★★

“a spellbinding cast, laugh out loud comedy, and plenty of panto sparkle”

Fresh from refurbishment, the Cambridge Arts Theatre reopens the stage that helped launch stars like Sir Ian McKellen and Sir Derek Jacobi. Kicking off its reawakening is ‘Sleeping Beauty’, a pantomime for all the family with a stellar cast, sparkling energy and laugh out loud fun. Come and add your applause to this iconic theatre’s history.

In the magical kingdom of Trumpington, Princess Rose is cursed by the fame hungry Carabosse – until Fairy Strawberry saves the day by softening the spell. The King hides Princess Rose deep within the Botanic Gardens to escape the curse. But will their plan succeed and can Rose’s friends help her find true love?

Written by Chris Jarvis of BBC fame, the story offers some fresh turns: Carabosse craves online fame, Prince Ken sends up the ‘prince charming’ trope, and the nanny is of course a panto dame. The script brims with puns and local jokes, including a whole song about Cambridgeshire towns. Consent is neatly included before the kiss. Extra scenes earn their place with laughs despite adding little to the plot – especially the riotously funny slip and slide sequence. New characters don’t all seem necessary (sorry Happy Harry!), and extended rhyming couplets and repeated introductions wear a little thin after a while, but overall it’s an entertaining update full of panto magic.

Director Michael Gattrell and Assistant Director Amy Kinnear deliver impressive sets, vibrant costumes and larger than life puppetry. Lively asides, slick transitions and seamless audience interaction keep the pace brisk and the energy high, with a group song led by eager volunteers proving a delightful highlight.

Musical Director Dean McDermott and Deputy Sam Fluskey (also on bass guitar) deliver an upbeat, well chosen score packed with modern hits for all ages. The lyrics are playfully adapted to each scene, and the band – completed by Alex Ward on guitar and Alan Dale on drums – delivers a rich, full sound far exceeding its size.

Kevan Allen’s choreography bursts with energy, blending ballet, jazz, Charleston and other styles in routines that flow well.

Ian Westbrook’s set design features hand painted detail and plenty of sparkle. The giant dragon is a showstopper and its comic disappearance earns big laughs. Mike Robertson’s vibrant lighting syncs seamlessly with the action, punctuating Carabosse’s dramatic entrances to great effect. Will Thompson’s sound design occasionally threatens to overpower the singers but is cleverly timed with playful effects sharpening the comedy. The costumes are a triumph, with the Dame parading an impressive array of increasingly outlandish outfits, and the glittering red finale a striking sight.

The stunning cast is packed with seasoned West End performers. Daisy Twells enchants as Princess Rose, with crystal clear vocals to match her refined elegance. Tricia Adele-Turner delivers delicious sass and powerhouse vocals as Carabosse. Tanisha Butterfield delights as Fairy Strawberry, her gentle presence lifted by soaring alto tones. Matt Harrop infuses King Truman with whimsical charm, crowned by a thrilling burst of vocal firepower. Joseph Hewlett charms as Prince Ken, fusing adorable sweetness with magnetic American cool and another stunning vocal performance. UK Pantomime Award winner Steven Roberts makes Happy Harry a lovable sidekick to the panto dame, brimming with sweet silliness. Matt Crosby as Nanny Nutkins steals the show with sharp improv, impeccable comic timing, and a towering personality. Taylor Alman, Charlie Barnard, Morgan Broome, Danielle Cato, Oliver Imeson, and Sophie Karaolis shine as a dynamic ensemble, bursting with energy and commitment.

‘Sleeping Beauty’ kicks off the return of the Cambridge Arts Theatre with a bang. With a spellbinding cast, laugh out loud comedy, and plenty of panto sparkle, it promises a dream night out.

SCISSORHANDZ

Southwark Playhouse Elephant

★★★

“The cast are superb across the board and there is an easy camaraderie that adds to the feelgood factor”

It is a bold statement to tag your show with the subtitle ‘A Musical Reinvented’. But there is nothing faint-hearted about Bradley Bredeweg’s reinterpretation of Tim Burton’s classic and gothic fairytale. Direct from Los Angeles, it bursts onto the London stage as though heading for Wembley Arena, but instead took a wrong turn and landed up in the three-hundred-seater, Southwark venue. Edward Scissorhands, the solemn and doleful outsider, has morphed into a rock legend of their own making – if only for a few fleeting seconds before retreating behind the bank of loudspeakers to await rediscovery.

The tale of an outsider trying to ‘fit in’ is an obvious celebration of being different; yet it is hard to maintain the impact of this message when the whole ensemble are complete weirdos anyway. A delightful bunch, nonetheless. Jordan Kai Burnett’s Scissorhands is slightly pushed into the shadows as a result, eclipsed by the eccentrics that surround them. Emma Williams, as Avon Lady Peg who adopts the waif-like Scissorhands, also adopts the role of protagonist with her wonderfully kooky, mad-as-a-hatter portrayal of the American housewife. Neighbours Joyce (Tricia Adele-Turner), Esmerelda (Annabelle Terry) and Helen (Ryan O’Connor) are as maverick and flamboyant as Abby Clarke’s primary-coloured costume design; while Dionne Gipson’s striking, ethereal ‘Inventor’ holds court from on high.

We are never completely emotionally engaged, but are always sucked into the sheer energy and sense of fun with which the performers are swamping the stage. And even if the song list gratuitously breaks the continuity of the story, the numbers are delivered with a powerful virtuosity. Like many juke-box musicals, the choice is hit and miss – some forming a neat and natural segue from the dialogue, whereas others are as isolated from the plot as Scissorhands is from reality. But, boy, there are some belters in there! Annabelle Terry’s ‘Heaven is a Place on Earth’ is a standout moment, along with Tricia Adele-Turner’s ‘Bleeding Love’ and Dionne Gipson’s ‘Mad World’. Emma Williams majestically reinvents ‘Creep’ (even though we really feel the song belongs to Scissorhands), and throughout the show, the wall of sound created by musical director Arlene McNaught’s five-piece band threaten to bring the roof down.

It is quite the spectacle, but the nuances of Burton’s original are lost in the mix, just as the quirkiness is occasionally obscured by an earnestness that is shoe-horned in. Rather than reinvented, the musical is relabelled – somewhat superficially like a ‘new-and-improved’, ‘special-offer’ packaging. Overtly establishing in a throwaway line of dialogue the correct pronoun for the lead character merely scratches the surface of the essential issue, while we either want it to dig deeper, or else take it as a given (as it should be).

There is a fair amount of disarray, but we cannot mistake the sheer joyfulness of it. The cast are superb across the board and there is an easy camaraderie that adds to the feelgood factor. The audience feel part of it all, especially when the fourth wall breaks down and boundaries are overstepped. Improvised ad-libs are let loose, often as sharp as the blades of Scissorhands’ make-shift fingers.

“Scissorhandz” is a fun-loving, camp, boisterous show bursting to crash through the walls of its chosen venue. But like Scissorhands themself, is a bit of a chimera – not quite fully formed. Yet there is something special in there, and it is an extraordinary piece of musical theatre. Its message implores us to seek that ‘special something’ within ourselves. Applied to itself, this show could well be onto a winning path to completion.

SLEEPING BEAUTY

Cambridge Arts Theatre

★★★★

“a spellbinding cast, laugh out loud comedy, and plenty of panto sparkle”

SLEEPING BEAUTY

Cambridge Arts Theatre

Reviewed on 7th December 2025

by Hannah Bothelton

Photography by Richard Hubert Smith

Most recently reviewed at this venue:

Sleeping Beauty

Sleeping Beauty

Sleeping Beauty

SCISSORHANDZ

Southwark Playhouse Elephant

★★★

“The cast are superb across the board and there is an easy camaraderie that adds to the feelgood factor”

SCISSORHANDZ

Southwark Playhouse Elephant

Reviewed on 30th January 2025

by Jonathan Evans

Photography by Danny Kaan

Previously reviewed at Southwark Playhouse venues:

SCISSORHANDZ

SCISSORHANDZ

SCISSORHANDZ

JOIN US