Michael Cox reviews Johnny McKnight's two Christmas shows.
Ask any Christmas theatre aficionado who’s Scotland’s current king of panto and one name will prevail: Johnny McKnight. There are a few reasons for this: not only has he had multiple irons in the fire over the last few years (between writing, directing and/or performing duties) but he comes across as someone who genuinely enjoys the art of the Christmas show.
Anyone wanting evidence of this should go to Stirling’s macrobert to see McKnight’s latest: Beauty & the Beast. Here’s a production that someone with crossed arms and a raised eyebrow could nit-pick to death: the characters are thinly drawn, the gags are scattered with heavy reliance on flatulence and, perhaps the biggest offender of all, the production hardly bothers furthering the actual story of Belle and the cursed prince.
But to focus on any of that completely misses the point, because what the production might lack in dramatic tension it more than makes up for in pure heart: everything is done so sincerely that it’s all but impossible to not get caught in its complete charm.
McKnight’s company have a complete ball on stage. Michele Gallagher and Jo Freer have some choice comedic moments throughout, and Dawn Sievewright’s Belle is a heroine who’s easy to sympathise with and root for. Martin McCormick might have drawn the short straw here because the production doesn’t give him as much to do as the rest of the company, but his role as the Prince/Beast does have some good moments sprinkled throughout, including the opening and closing musical numbers.
The standouts, without surprise, are McKnight’s dame Bunty and Robert Jack’s simplistic but earnest Sebastian. Perhaps the production gives this double-act more attention than the titular pair, but McKnight and Jack are a great comedic duo who had the audience in stitches, and their interplay is far and away the production’s greatest aspect.
With a young company full of contagious energy, Beauty & the Beast might not be the best rendition of the popular tale, but it’s an absolute delight from start to finish.
Also a delight, but for many different reasons, is the McKnight-scripted Peter Panto and the Incredible Stinkerbell, playing at the Tron in Glasgow. Under Kenny Miller’s direction and design, the production is a modern Glaswegian take on the JM Barrie classic.
It might be a bit too clever and mature for younger audiences, but those looking for a sarcastic alternative to the Christmas season that isn’t too adult in nature probably will find much to appreciate. Out goes the large ensemble, London setting and panto dog and in are plenty of localised jokes and sex-role reversals.
Anita Vettesse makes Barrie’s almost angelic Mrs Darling into a West End snob and the dreaded Captain Hook into a dashing Captain New Look; meanwhile Darren Brownlie’s Mr Darling isn’t the high-minded master of the universe he’s usually portrayed as but is instead a goofy foil for his wife, a role which pours into Chai Thai: this production’s version of the much-loved Smee. Louise McCarthy’s Wendy also gets a modern makeover, coming across as someone who is more inclined to hang out with local chavs than society’s polite upper crust. Helen McAlpine’s Peter feels like Barrie’s original who just happens to be in a different version (and her Nana—an out of work actress forced to pretend to be a dog—is a comedic highlight).
Perhaps one’s reaction to the production will hinge on their feelings towards Sally Reid’s Stinkerbell, for it is here that McKnight’s script is a bit make-or-break. Calling the character Stinkerbell pretty much paints the character into a corner of being the butt of constant fart jokes. It is to Reid’s credit that she still manages to make a ‘minging’ fairy into an interesting character that is funny and sympathetic, particularly when watching her react to Wendy falling in love with Peter. Still, much of the humour relies on the one-note joke of a farting fairy, and there is only so much one can take.
All of this results in a production that is an utter blast, even if it might not strongly linger long after the curtain falls.
Beauty & the Beast performs at macrobert until January 5. Peter Panto and the Incredible Stinkerbell performs at the Tron until January 5. Check website for specific dates and times.
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