Look Behind You by Daniel Wain.
š·š·š·š· – 4 out of 5 glasses of Christmas Spirit!
Theatre At The Tabard, Bath Road, London W4.
Welcome to the cross-dressing, thigh-slapping, wise-cracking world of pantomime, where monkeys talk, dreams come true and people are hit but never hurt. Now look behind the scenesā¦ at the bad-mouthing, two-timing, pill-popping pressure cooker that is backstage reality. The perfect bitter-sweet antidote to the seasonal slush!
A very glamorous curtain at the start of the show points to its ambition. We follow the run of a gruelling pantomime at the fictitious ‘Britannia Theatre’, both front of cloth, backstage and in occasional dressing rooms.
With a cast of eleven, I was keen to see the REAL dressing rooms at The Tabard. But I guess they coped.
We join a cast of ‘traditional’ panto stereotypesā- a weather girl, a couple of jobbing pros, the privileged daughter of a local businessman, a couple of soap stars, a
clueless pop star, a ‘know-it-all-what’s-my-method’ recent drama school graduate and the Dame, who also owns the theatre and in real life, is the writer and founder of Theatre Company Strut and Fret.
Look Behind You is a clever conceit even if the first half is over-long and a bit short on story. But things pick up in the second half and there are some great, funny, genuine panto moments and some glorious set pieces, including nostalgia on stage, a blackout scene, an argument with a hand puppet and a hand gun, some touching emotional truths, a Cat that finally grows claws and some spot-on political statements!
The pantomime season may be winding down, but go Look Behind. You at The Tabard. It’s a charming, cheering, mixed bag of pro performers. Oh yes it is!
Look Behind You
TICKETS: Ā£23.50 / Ā£19.50 concessions. Previews (17th/18th January): Ā£19.50 / Ā£15.50 concessions. Final week: Ā£25.50 / Ā£21.50 concessions
AGE GUIDANCE: Warning: Look Behind You contains lots of Pussy, Dickā¦ and Nuts. Over 14ās only
