Beauty and the Beast
King’s Theatre, Glasgow
FROM Stanley Baxter to Una McLean, Gerard Kelly to Barbara Rafferty, the pantomime at Glasgow’s King’s Theatre has an illustrious history. The show’s current headliner, Elaine C Smith – who has performed, off and on, in the show for more than 25 years – has played a very significant role in that history. Panto thrives on a combination of tradition and contemporary humour, and this year’s King’s show, Beauty and the Beast, has both in abundance.
Smith plays the role of Mrs Potty, mother to her sidekick Johnny Mac’s Jack Potty (geddit?). Mother and son work in the castle of Prince Sebastian (impressive Royal Conservatoire of Scotland graduate Calum McElroy), who – as aficionados of the 18th-century French fairytale will tell you – has been cursed to live as a hideous beast until he can find a way to both love and be loved. Kept behind closed doors for 364 days a year, the Pottys’ working conditions are little better than those in an Amazon fulfilment centre.
Meanwhile, down in the village of Clydeside, the lovely Belle (Blythe Jandoo on sparkling form) and her clever brother Shuggie (the superb Darren Brownlie) have an unfortunate date with destiny. Shuggie’s efforts to procure a single red rose for his sister on her birthday end up putting the pair of them under the power of the very miffed Beast.
Needless to say, writer Alan McHugh’s script keeps assiduously to the storyline of the original fairytale. That’s especially true of the bit where, you know, Jack wants to get to the village before the baddie (Malky McSneer, played with humorously toxic masculinity by Matthew McKenna), but Shuggie hasn’t finished repairing Jack’s motorbike, so the Enchantress (the fabulous Rachel Flynn) grants him the magic power to fly on his bike.
The centre aisle at Lidl continues to be a comic gift that keeps on giving. Mrs Potty only went into the German supermarket for a loaf of bread and a pint of milk, but came out with “a set of skis and a rocket launcher”.
Fine actor and dancer Brownlie (who made his King’s panto debut last year) proves himself to be an excellent addition to the cast, not least in a hilariously chaotic rendition of the 12 Days of Christmas. Mac – who has built up a very decent rapport with the King’s audience – enhances his credentials with a brilliant interlude involving (on Thursday night) some wonderfully comical local children.
It is Smith, however, who is the primary star of the show, and she bestrides the King’s stage with the aplomb of a Rikki Fulton or a Jimmy Logan.
This is particularly true of the tongue-twisting scene in which she’s required to impersonate Sean Connery saying a lot of words (including “sat” and “sit”) that begin, somewhat problematically, with the letter ‘s’.
All of this nonsense is wrapped in the King’s pantomime’s typical garish glamour, bold live music and high-kicking dancing. Director Kathryn Rooney’s sharp, pacey production truly is a beauty of a festive show.
Beauty and the Beast runs until December 31: atgtickets.com
