Writer: Trish Cooke
Music and Lyrics: Robert Hyman
Director: Omar F. Okai
A crimson and turquoise patchwork of painted wooden panels, doors and shutters, sets the scene for this version of Pinocchio. Designer Stewart J Charlesworth has produced one of the most colourful sets you’re likely to see in London this panto season. Channelling mid-century-modern stylishness and retro-futurist atompunk aesthetics, Charlesworth creates the cheerfully dilapidated town of Stratty Ash and the Fallout-style interior of toymaker Geppetto’s house. Brightest of all, a series of neon enticements lure wooden puppet Pinocchio (played by talented Dylan Collymore) away from his allegorical path towards learning the value of honesty and kindness.
The costumes are similarly vibrant, from patched dungarees and cartoon-esque school uniforms to a glow-in-the-dark circus ringmaster. Nicole Louise Lewis plays Krik Krak the cricket in lime green and glittering antennae. Michael Bertenshaw’s ageing Blue Rinse Fairy sports a cobalt perm, sparkly handbag and metres of netting under her starry skirt. Bertenshaw’s classic, unhurried and slightly world-weary pantomime dame is a nice contrast with Lewis’s perky audience-hyping cricket. Sly Fox (Rushand Chambers) and sinuous Miss Kat (Jhanaica Van Mook) are resplendent in orange and pink, with (respectively) chequered teddy-boy suit and psychedelic flares plus feather boa.
Trish Cooke and Robert Hyman’s innovative script and show-stopping songs hammer home the moral messages and are spiced with some topical asides. “I’ll go see a doctor first thing tomorrow,” says Geppetto (Tok Morakinyo), adding, “if I can get an appointment!” Asking how the mischievous marionette she’s looking for is powered, Blue Rinse suggests strings, glove puppetry and “AI then?” Modern problems are highlighted in the design: Pinocchio is rescued from the ocean wrapped in netting that has snared a crisp packet and surgical mask.
When the Florentine novelist Carlo Collodi first wrote The Adventures of Pinocchio in 1883, he might have been surprised to imagine it being staged with a mix of soca, funk and reggae numbers in urban Stratford, round the back of a 1970s shopping centre. But the ornate red-and-gold Stratford East theatre itself, celebrating its 140th birthday in December this year, first opened in 1884, and Collodi would still recognise numerous elements of his original story. We see not just the talking cricket and blue fairy but also chicken-stealing weasels, Pinocchio’s coach trip to Playland, where kids turn into donkeys, and the belly of a giant shark.
Omar F Okai’s pacy direction and Claudimar Neto’s sharp choreography keep the whole complicated fable bowling along. Some fabulous footwork hints at jazz, tap and balletic influences, while other moves suggest the energy and flow of contemporary and street dance.
Promoting truth and generosity in an age of greed and fake news, this show reinvents a classic fairy tale to be the tonic we need now. The venal fox and cat, embodying the endless dissatisfaction of consumerism, insist there is “no such thing as enough”, persuading Pinocchio to spend his gold coins in Miracles casino. This is another element cleverly adapted from the original novel, where the pair lure the puppet to the money-growing campo dei Miracoli. Recreating a classic American aesthetic, Stratford East’s new Pinocchio sees Europe through a 1960s Broadway lens. The sinister ringmaster of “Cirque de la Lune” echoes the Emcee in Cabaret, welcoming the audience with “Meine Damen und Herren, Mesdames et Messieurs…”
If there is a criticism to be made, it’s that the show stays mostly on one hyper level and rarely pauses for breath. But excited kids are a tough crowd and can respond less enthusiastically to quieter moments. The cast works hard to entertain us through song, dance, storytelling, and interaction. The desperate shouts that try to warn Pinocchio when he runs into danger show how engaged the audience is in the puppet’s quest to become a real boy. With spectacular design and energetic choreography, this is a crowd-pleasing traditional pantomime.
Runs until 4 January 2025
The Reviews Hub Score
Spectacular design
