The King's Theatre, Glasgow
1st December 2022
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
The Glasgow King's Theatre pantomime has to be the biggest and glitziest in Scotland. The sets are sumptuous, the costumes are gorgeous, there is fire and fireworks aplenty. The whole theatre and staging is a feast for the eyes.
Beauty and the Beast has everything you could wish for from a panto. There's a simple storyline, glamorous dancers, plenty of callouts, laughs and silliness, singalongs, onstage shenanigans, lots of sparkle and a ton of Glaswegian humour and heart.
It's perfectly pitched for kids and adults. In fact I've never seen a better panto; It really is that good.
The house was full last night and there was a warm, joyous atmosphere throughout the whole venue. Front of House are always amazing at this theatre, but last night they seemed to be just as excited as the audience.
The cast project warmth and welcome out to the audience too; I genuinely left with a lighter step and a glow in my heart. My favourite scene was the ghost dance. Hats of to the choreographer. I loved it!
Johnny Mac is a panto legend for a reason and he is outstanding as Jack here. His quick recap of the whole show was done without a single hesitation. Impressive! He was wonderful with the kids on stage too - They will never forget that. He is devilishly mischievous but a real talent.
Darren Brownlie makes everything better and he is divine in this. So likeable and sumptuously stagey. His comic timing is spot on.
Elaine C Smith is Scottish panto and Scottish TV royalty. She's the perfect Mrs Potty and it was lovely to hear her sing too.
Special mention to Matthew McKenna who was a delightfully brilliant baddie (boo!!) I've never seen a villain in a kilt and Matthew looked like he had a lot of fun in a fantastic role.
All the cast, musicians and creative team have done a marvellous job here. I fell out of love with panto a few years ago having sat through a couple of less than great ones in a row... But the King's Beauty and the Beast has more than restored my faith. It's panto perfection.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Playing at the King's Theatre Glasgow until 31 December, rush for tickets before the last petal falls.
📸 Production photos: Richard Campbell
[Review first posted on Instagram 2 December 2022]
Beauty and the Beast - review. The King's Theatre Glasgow panto 2022. Crossroads pantomime, Scottish Theatre, 2022 pantomime
🎟️ Disclosure: I was invited to review this show and received a complimentary ticket in exchange. Whether I am invited or not has absolutely no impact on my reviews or star ratings.
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