Jack and the Beanstalk – Broadway Theatre Catford, London

Writer & Director: Susie Mckenna

Fe, Fi, Fo, Fum – Broadway Theatre Catford’s Jack and The Beanstalk panto has opened, and it’s a pretty good one.

Bee Day is being celebrated in the town of Lewishfarm, raising awareness about the importance of its role in society and how extinction would impact everyone on the planet. The citizens have banded together to attend the celebrations, but although the community is cheery and positive, they acknowledge the struggle they’ve had over the past few years. The cost-of-living crisis forced everyone to start growing their own food, which is how Lewishfarm came to fruition. Rent is sky high and the giant in the sky is working with the rich elite to mine as much gold as possible.

So when Boris the lying cockroach (Ben Fox) flies into the town to announce yet another rent increase, the town is not happy. Boris’s floppy blonde hair, baggy suit and blue tie seem familiar, but as they state, any resemblance is purely coincidental and definitely not actually modelled on any recently disgraced politicians.

Jack Trott (Durone Stokes) and his family are struggling as it is, and sadly have to sell off their prize possession Caroline the Cow just to make enough to pay the new premiums. Luckily, Jack runs into a mysterious old lady who agrees to buy the cow and give it a good home in exchange for a pack of magic beans. Cue the traditional Jack and the Beanstalk story of Jack going up to confront the (very impressively created) giant in the hope of saving his town, and spoiler alert, as with any pantomime, there is thankfully a happy ending and a town joyfully celebrating together.

This panto is definitely light-hearted, full of fun, packed with silly puns for the adults and enjoyable interactions for the children. Plus, any show that ends with a singalong with the audience of Sweet Caroline is an automatic winner. But it also is packed with a surprising amount of social commentary – the environmental issues the world is facing, the cost-of-living crisis, even Keir Starmer and Suella Braverman get a few brilliantly scathing and well-deserved comments thrown their way. While these messages may be lost on some of the kids in the audience, it’s well received by the adults, adding an extra layer to the otherwise easy watch.

The cast is brilliant – Derek Elroy as Dame Dolores and Wayne Rollins as Scarecrow are excellent fun while Siobhan Athwal as Queen Bee serves as the wonderfully sassy narrator with a great singing voice. Durone Stokes and Evelyn Hoskins are both extremely likeable, their happy enthusiasm infectious for the audience, and although the Boris character is hated – Ben Fox is loved for his fantastic portrayal of the villain. Grace Moorhouse as Goldiniah The Hen only has a small part, but her big vocals make an impact within her solo song in Act 2. The band (Ben Goddard-Young, James Pattison, Gareth Thompson, Alexandra Teixidó Blouna) are on full view during the whole show, and it’s great to see them get involved in key scenes whether it’s by falling around when the giant walks, or throwing on a hat during a water fight, they immerse themselves into the storyline in a way many productions don’t.

Writer and Director Susie Mckenna previously worked on the Hackney Empire pantomimes and has bought the same level of fun and quality over to Broadway Theatre Catford. She ensures the perfect panto balance of silly and cheesy while still making sure there are meaningful messages at the heart of the storyline, creating the expected feel-good fun, while still packing a political punch.

Runs until 31 December 2023