Before Jack and The Beanstalk began I was impressed by the sheer scale of the production. The audience was buzzing and the stage seemed set for a hidden gem of a show.
Unfortunately, I felt that the production values of the show itself, the flashy sets, costumes and Giant (yes an actual giant) were under-shadowed by some lacklustre moments.
One saving grace musically was delivered by Holly Ind and Alicia Fairhurst as Fairy Quinoa and Jill. Their song came in the second act of the show and honestly had me re-discovering the joys of songs sung with a bit of oomph.
Ian Watts as Black Head gave a great performance, delivering a ‘Greatest Show’ rendition that showed that he has a cracking but shy voice and with a bit of gumption he could have held the audience captivated by his character.
I was, I must admit, never bored as the show was colourful, loud and surprisingly funny; it just lacked a solid story as the usual tale of Jack and The Beanstalk was watered down considerably by the waffley scenes that just seemed to be filler during a set change.
My ‘Star of the Show’ tonight was a toss-up between the live band as a whole (jolly good show team!) and the much-underused role of The Big Scary Dragon (Danni Groom) who was cute, ‘ahhhh’ inducing and heart-warming.
The band were wonderful and even managed to have comic timing! It was however quite off putting that the sound levels were such that many lines and sung moments were lost.
I left with my ribs hurting and my eyes watering from laughing so much. I feel as if this show had fabulous potential; it simply lacked the oomph that would have made it a better show.
