Review – Beccles & Bungay Journal – Jan 2003
Yes this was indeed the stuff of fairy tales
The premise of this brilliantly written, original story – that two children find themselves in a land populated by fairy tale figures who bear an uncanny resemblance to the people in their village – lent itself to some fine gags and great characters.
I wasn’t alone in being particularly taken with Anthony Bunting who as Mrs. Simple (in the real village and The Old Woman Who Lived in a Shoe in Wonderland) was everything a panto Dame should be.
He got masses of laughs throughout the show and thunderous applause at the end. And Maureen Larkin proved to be a great sidekick as Nelly Yapp, and Old Mother Hubbard.
Her dog Tiny, played by Pauline Mason, despite not much as barking two words, managed to make enough of an impression with her antics on my son, who said she was his favourite character.
Anna and Peter, the two children at the centre of the story, were played with a confidence beyond their years by Elizabeth Fulcher and Hayley Daniels. They not only succeeded in flying over hurdles that many a child panto actor stumbles upon – fluffed lines and un-projected voices – but brought real life to the story.
Other worthy mentionables were a charming Adam Taylor as Simon Simple and the Woodcutter, Steve Burton and Mike Catling as a very funny Tweedle Dum and Tweedle Dee. And Caroline Dover as both the Evil Witch of the Woods and the beautiful Miss Wychwood.
