Bucks &amp; Oxon

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Back for a whopping 50th year anniversary, the Chippy Norton panto is an unmissable tradition around these parts, and this year&#8217;s version of fairytale classic Dick Whittington is no exception &#8211; especially for fans of a well-placed dick joke. Don&#8217;t click away, this is far from R-rated. Instead, it&#8217;s family fun at its best, with hilarious comedy numbers, sparkly costumes, and the typical shenanigans you can expect of this total treasure of 214-seater theatre: namely, a water gun fight, sweets thrown into the audience, and erm, synchronised swimming lessons. But there&#8217;s plenty to keep adults and teens entertained too, from the aforementioned tongue-in-cheek jokes to the brilliant lyrics of writer John Terry (not that one). 



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Dick Whittington&#8216;s story starts out fairly similarly to the original tale &#8211; lead Gregor Duncan is the titular Dick, who arrives in London with his cat Whittington (played with excellent over-the-top silent facial expressions from Nadia Shash) full of optimism and big dreams for the future. However, the city has been taken over by villain and cat-hater Madame Rat, played by the scene-stealing Ada Campe, a cabaret performer, comedian and magician making her debut at Chippy Panto (Sandi Toksvig is a big fan apparently). 



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She was an instant hit with the audience, with her bonkers signature makeup, gravelly voice and massive stage presence despite being not much taller than her gang of adorable rat minions, The Pippins. Particular mention goes to her growling rendition of Sinatra&#8217;s &#8216;My Way&#8217; with appropriately rodent-y lyrics. 



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In order to hide Whittington, Dick takes a job at the house of pompous explorer Horace &#8211; played by Gareth Cooper, who I loved in last year&#8217;s Rapunzel &#8211; and his beautiful, intelligent daughter Alice. I actually had to check the programme to make sure the theatre hadn&#8217;t somehow landed Karen Gillan as their love interest, such is the visual similarity between her and Megan-Hollie Robertson, who plays Alice with fierce earnestness and in fine voice &#8211; her duets with Duncan, whose Scottish brogue gives him a Biffo Clyro quality when he belts, gave me mega goosebumps. 



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Speaking of singing: also living at the house is disastrous cook Sal M&#8217;nella, taking on the role of traditional panto dame and played by cabaret star Andrew Pepper, who towers above the cast in his Grease-esque pink wig, wobbling on top of his head like a blancmange. Fitting, really, as Sal&#8217;s whole schtick is food-based, including several lively musical numbers and a slapstick cooking section that&#8217;ll have the kids screaming in delight (keep your eyes peeled for the horse poo brownies). Sal&#8217;s no matronly panto nursemaid, either &#8211; Pepper plays her with a lip-licking lasciviousness as he slinks and sashays around the stage in costumes that wouldn&#8217;t be out of place on RuPaul&#8217;s Drag Race. God help you if you have an easy-on-the-eye husband and sit anywhere near the front row. 



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Flitting in and out of the action (sometimes literally) is Evie James, who performs some masterful quick costume changes as the whimsical Fairy Fee, cockney locksmith Nance and &#8211; my favourite &#8211; the squawking Contessa of Petiti, in which she appears as a mountain of fuchsia ruffles, rhinestones and baubles. 



Between the Contessa, Sal and Madame Rat, who share several scenes in Act Two as the haphazard crew set sail for the island of Petiti on the boat Maid of Plywood, it&#8217;s often a delightful competition to see who can ham it up the most on stage, but the big personalities never outstay their welcome or outshine the must-have Christmas feel-good message. In particular, younger girls in the audience will love Alice&#8217;s girl power vibes, and the final Christmas scenes are so heart-warmingly earnest that it&#8217;s impossible to leave without a smile on your face and several chocolate mice in your purse (you&#8217;ll see). 



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I could ramble on about Chipping Norton&#8217;s pantos all day, but suffice to say this one hits the mark for story, costumes and fantastic sets (I particularly love the sparkling fairylights of Petiti), with all the classic panto bits like audience participation and singalongs feeling less like a chore and more like a well-loved festive tradition. May it live another 50 years. 



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-the-muddy-verdict">THE MUDDY VERDICT&nbsp;</h2>



Good for: Everyone! This is a family favourite that&#8217;ll have even the most panto cynical cracking a smile. 



Not for:&nbsp;Tinies who won&#8217;t last the 2+ hour runtime. 



&#8216;Dick Whittington&#8217; is at The Theatre Chipping Norton, 2 Spring St, Chipping Norton OX7 5NL until 15 Jan 2023. <a href="https://www.chippingnortontheatre.com/whats-on/dick-whittington" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Book tickets here</a>.

Review: ‘Dick Whittington’ at Chipping Norton Theatre

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