REVIEW | Beauty and the Beast, Sheffield Lyceum Theatre
Duncan James (Danton) and the Company of Beauty and the Beast. Photo by Sam Taylor.Written by Kirsty
Disclaimer: Provided with tickets in return for an honest review
The annual Sheffield Lyceum pantomime is a true annual must-see for the people of Sheffield and this year's show Beauty and the Beast is no exception. This year, Sheffield legendary Pantomime Dame Damian Williams is joined by Duncan James, Jennie Dale, Bessy Ewa, and Max Fulham.
The show was a joy from start to finish with many standout moments, with most of the laughs coming from Williams’s Madame Bellie Flop and Fulham’s wonderfully endearing Phillipe Fillop. James played Danton with true flair and his rendition of “I’m Just Dan” was one of the highlights of the evening. Ewa, who was recently in West End favourites & Juliet and Back to the Future played Belle with the perfect mix of heart and strength. Her performance of “Confident” was beautiful and paid the right level of homage to & Juliet and really showed what a strong future Ewa has to come.
West End and CBeebies star Dale, played Cupid who as well as trying to help Aidan Banyard’s Beast, his one true love, she was also the perfect narrator for the show. She interacted so well with the audience and ensured that all the things we all love about panto were there. Fulham, who was joined by Gordon the Monkey was so sweet as Phillipe and his ventriloquism skills were some of the best I have ever seen, dealing with every challenge thrown at him by Williams and knocking it out of the park. There is no doubt that Fulham has a bright future ahead of him, and I can’t wait to see him in another show.
There is no doubt that the standout performance of the show belongs to Damian Williams who is celebrating his 16th year performing in the Lyceum panto and I can’t wait to go back to see him next year. He works so well with all of the cast and even though it is clear that he is the star of the show, it is not at the detriment of any of the other performers.
The show had the perfect mix of material for the whole audience, both adults and children with jokes for everyone. One thing that makes the Lyceum panto stand out is the love given to Sheffield as a city including jokes about the local football teams, and the now-expected Lyceum bench song. Adults will particularly enjoy the pop culture references which are littered throughout including William’s entrance as “Lardie” which was an obvious homage to the huge success of Barbie and this runs throughout the show and keeps getting funnier and funnier. Paul Hendy’s script had something for everyone without being tacky and tasteless.
Children will love the ability to cheer and shout for their favourites including the necessary “It’s Behind You” jokes and the children in the audience loved the slapstick jokes which were throughout the show and especially Bellie Flop’s ice cream machine.
There is of course the happy ever after moment which we all expect at a panto, and this gives us the chance to hear Banyard’s strong rock voice once more.
Amy Chamberlain’s Costume Design was flawless especially the staff of Beast’s castle. Michael J Batchelor’s designs for Williams were extraordinary with William’s multiple costume changes with the Dame’s costumes getting bigger and brasher with every entrance with special mention to the Veezu outfit. The ensemble cast costumes were also treated with as much care and love as the main characters, including the hilarious Figgy played by Luke Cartledge. The sets designed by Morgan Large were sumptuous and again paid homage to Sheffield as a city and the sets of the Beasts Castle would not have been out of place on a West End stage.
Other than the jokes which were perfectly aimed at adults without being unnecessarily rude, there were some loud bangs including confetti cannons which some audience members may need to be aware of. Other than this, this is the perfect panto to take young family members to as the perfect introduction to live theatre.
The show is running at Sheffield’s Lyceum Theatre until 7 January 2024 with a captioned performance on 20 December and 6 January. There is also a Signed and Audio described performance on 21 December.
