Review: Beauty and the Beast, Storyhouse

Words: Angela Ferguson, Paul Crofts and Eve Ferguson

If an uplifting and glitter-strewn panto is on your festive wish list then may we recommend this gem of a production.

We would describe Beauty and the Beast as a traditional panto for the modern age, full of nods to many of the panto traditions, while bringing the genre bang up to date with topical references, characters and themes. 

It is lovely to see the traditional “he’s behind you” scene, often referred to as the ghost sketch, is included in Beauty and the Beast but we feel the producers missed an opportunity to get more out of it. It is all too brief and would give the audience the opportunity to take part more in the traditional and often raucous scene. 

There are other traditional elements missing which would make it more family friendly but the overall feel of the production fits Storyhouse well. 

The show is visually impressive, in terms of the lighting and the set, all further enhanced by the sound.

It’s a slick production which is well put together, with lots of laugh out loud moments from the outset.

As the house lights go down and we enjoy gazing upon the pink pastel shades of this fairy dust-strewn setting, we are taken on a magical journey to the village of Fromage Ville, where the citizens do love a good cheesy joke.

There we meet Belle (Katarina Zofia), and her father Marcel (Tom Richardson), who juggles busting the occasional slick move with his civic duties as the mayor.

There are some hilarious stand out moments, not least the Pink Pony Club scene, performed to Chappell Roan’s anthemic hit, and the reference to the movie Ghost. The cheeky nod to Disney with the line “we can’t sing that, we’ll get sued” is brilliant. 

There are plenty of moments where we are shimmying in our seats as the cast power through more bangers ranging from Britney classic Toxic and Bruno Mars and Lady Gaga’s Die With A Smile to K-pop hit Golden from Netflix show K-Pop Demon Hunters.

It’s just on the right side of camp without being over the top, which we loved, although one of the We Are Chester team says it is a shame that it feels like it is aimed more at adults than younger children. 

Through the show, we learn the back story of “the Beast” Henri (Daniel Bowskill) and just why he lives alone, apart from his enchanted friends, including Gregoire (Tom Lloyd) and Faby (Tom Pigram).

Preening Pierre (Pranav Viswanathan) wants to be adored and so turns to Tinder in his bid to find a partner as part of the modern take on a classic fairytale.

Caitlin Drake, as Belle’s friend Amélie, brings sass and a masterclass in reclaiming the narrative as she reminds us all of the power we hold within.

Playwright and actor Anne Odeke has certainly made magic with this adaptation, weaving in plenty of light and shade and some thought-provoking moments such as how we should welcome opportunities to meet and learn from new friends and not fear differences in others.

She introduces two new characters to the tale – our wonderful Welsh fairy, Lavender (Emmy Stonelake) and Nightshade (Miriam O’Brien), who has a penchant for playing the long game when it comes to casting evil spells.

We also get to enjoy the talents of the ensemble, from Chester’s House of Dance, who play a key role in bringing us along on this epic adventure.

It’s good to hear some Chester references along the way, including a mention of the nearby suburb of “Notting Hoole” where everyone does brunch and Pilates apparently.

There is also an element of audience interaction – always good fun and part of the excitement of theatre.

As we head out of the theatre and into a fresh moonlit winter’s night, we have beaming smiles on our faces and our hearts feel distinctly lighter.

All in all, for Storyhouse’s first full on panto, it was superbly entertaining. Well done to director John Young and the entire company.  

Beauty and the Beast runs at the venue in Hunter Street, Chester, until Sunday 4 January, with ticket prices starting from £17.

There are captions at either side of the stage and Storyhouse is also putting on audio-described, British Sign Language-interpreted and relaxed performances to make this an inclusive production.

For more information, visit the Storyhouse website.

We give this production a festive and suitably sparkly ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐