Dick Whittington at De Montfort Hall, Leicester Review
Written by Hollie for Theatre & Tonic
Disclaimer: Gifted tickets in exchange for an honest review
Imagine Theatre brings their sparkling and imaginative adaptation of the classic pantomime Dick Whittington to Leicester’s De Montfort Hall this Christmas.
Will Dick be able to change his life and create a fortune for himself and his beloved Mum in the city? Can Dick and his loyal cat Boots outwit the evil Queen Rat? Could Dick’s greatest reward turn out to be love rather than riches? Will this show be the biggest thing since they found King Richard III in a nearby Leicester car park? Answers to all these questions and more will be answered in this spectacular pantomime, so buy your tickets and head down to Leicester this Christmas time.
Pop Princess Suzanne Shaw is your guide for the day as the loveable and twinkling Fairy Bow Bells. With her pop music background and just a little hearsay, Suzanne has been well chosen for this role as she opens the show with a shimmering performance of ‘Welcome to the City.’
Her nemesis, the venomous vermin The Queen Rat, played by West End star Djalenga Scott, gets the audience booing and hissing as she perfectly performs her role as the pantomime baddie. Her and her collection of rotten rats add that classic theme of good and evil to this show as they scuttle and creep around the city.
However, protagonist Dick Whittington, played by the effortlessly funny comedian Jarred Christmas, believes that the city of London has streets paved with gold. Striding into London with Dick is his precious and cheeky pet cat, musical moggie Boots, played by Jack ‘Hobbit’ Hobbs. Hobbs is an award-winning beatbox and multi-vocalist artist, so his role really added some extra energy and magic, and his portrayal felt natural and off the cuff. Hip hop and a skip with Boots as Hobbs’ beatboxing talent added a different dynamic and some surprising moments to the show. Have you ever seen a beatboxing cat before? No, me neither!
Making his pantomime debut this festive season is BBC Radio 2 DJ Richie Anderson in his role as Alderman Fitzwarren. Fitzwarren takes Dick under his wing as he arrives in London after his long journey from Leicester. There are many traffic and travel updates from Richie throughout the show, which reference his many jobs throughout his entertainment career.
In marketing for this year’s production of Dick Whittington, Richie is billed as the famous star, however, when he appeared on stage, he was not the main character. Jarred Christmas, who plays Dick, is well known in Leicester due to his repeated performances in their pantomimes over the years. I did feel that the marketing for this show in particular had taken the wrong perspective. Saying that, Richie was able to add his own personality to his character throughout the show, and he sang really well during his musical numbers.
Without a shadow of a doubt, the star of the show this year is Dame Sarah the Cook, played by Jack Ballard. Jack has played the Dame role for the last three years, and this year he provided a really great performance. Shouting the classic line ‘Hey up me ducks!’ as he enters the stage each time, we are met with a surprise over which crazy but charming costume will he be wearing next. His nautical-themed performance of ‘Cake by the Ocean’ was one of my highlights of the show as I laughed from Market Harborough to Loughborough and had a fantastic time.
Extra sparkles need to be mentioned for the creative team as the choreography, directed by choreographer Stuart Rogers, was some of the most imaginative and innovative choreography I have seen this pantomime season. As always, the costumes, designed by Harriet Dyson and Katie Lawson twinkled and shone and the set and props by Imagine Theatre themselves added to the magic and delight of the evening.
I wish I had my pantomime bingo board in hand, as many references from the year as well as local Leicester references were made throughout the show, with some particularly naughty Richard-related jokes for the adults. Audience members, young and old, had a great time, and this year’s pantomime had really improved since last year’s dismal performance of Snow White.
After reviewing six festive shows this year, Dick Whittington at Leicester’s De Montfort Hall was my favourite pantomime of the season. As it was my last show of the year, I really wanted to go out with a bang, and this delightfully charming performance surpassed my expectations. I look forward to seeing what the company decides to do next year in their pantomime for 2026, Beauty and the Beast.
If you are looking for a whole lot of cheese then you have come to the right place! This year’s pantomime Dick Whittington continues at Leicester’s De Montfort Hall until Saturday 3rd January 2026.
★★★★
