Beauty and the Beast, Portobello Town Hall Review
Written by Jacqueline for Theatre & Tonic
With Edinburgh’s panto season well underway, Stagedoor Entertainment are now throwing their hat in the ring with their production of Beauty and the Beast with a Portobello twist. This classic tale has been retold countless times, but never with quite as much niche Edinburgh humour, much to the delight of the locals!
This production is flawlessly led by Sarah Alexandra Brown. As the ‘Bella’ of ‘Portobella’, Brown is charming and effervescent. A particular highlight for me was seeing how well she interacted with the child cast, supporting them with warmth and enthusiasm. As our comic relief, Tattie Scone (Ross Jamieson) has impeccable timing and physical comedy. It could be argued that with a comic this strong, the Dame, Bonnie Scone (Alec Westwood), falls flat. At the performance I saw, the audience was not giving her jokes anywhere near the same reception as jokes made by other characters, possibly in part due to some of the enunciation being unclear. Having said that, it felt that the timing was off at points- as though Westwood was not yet fully confident with the script. I am optimistic that these issues will be resolved as the run progresses, meaning that Jamieson does not need to shoulder the load of the comedic duo. At the performance I saw, evil queen Beira was played by understudy Lisa Goldie. Her professionalism was faultless and she gave the impression that she had been performing the part for weeks-highly impressive as a cover during the opening weekend. Rounding out the core cast are Grant MacIver as the Beast and Erin Robertson as Will-O’-The-Wisp, each giving pleasant performances with plenty of charm and heart.
The soundtrack for Beauty and the Beast is delightfully varied- ranging from current Top 40 hits such as RAYE’s “Where Is My Husband?” to 90’s classics including the Rembrandt’s “I’ll Be There For You”. The choreography is performed enthusiastically, mainly by the cast of young performers who more than hold their own alongside the adult cast. The sets and costumes are simple yet engaging, with a well-executed Beast transformation towards the end of the show that left many of the younger audience members gasping in wonder.
Overall, Beauty and the Beast is a cheesy and camp production with a lot of heart. Though there are some slight missteps, this is a delightful production that will leave you full of festive cheer!
Beauty and the Beast runs at the Portobello Town Hall until December 28th.
★ ★ ★ ★
