Final curtain falls on Market Drayton am drams' Robin Hood pantomime

The much-anticipated show ran between February 19 and 22 and delighted audiences at the Festival Drayton Centre.

Written and directed by Susie Hayhurst and performed by local actors, the pantomime brought the legendary hero of Robin Hood and his merry band of outlaws to life in true pantomime fashion.

In a fun-filled show for all ages, there was ample laughter and audience interaction, catchy songs arranged by Matt Baker and some unexpected twists. 

A competition was held to design the advertising for this year's show, and talented artist Eden José wowed Market Drayton Amateur Operatic and Dramatics Society' with her design. She was a guest of honour alongside her family at the opening performance. 

In a post on social media, the amateur operatic and dramatics society said: "Well the final curtain has fallen on another year's pantomime. We hope you enjoyed it and we hope to see you back again next year... oh yes we do!"

John Hargreaves popped along to review the pantomime, and was impressed with what he saw.

Review by John Hargreaves

In a week dominated by dire portents on the international stage, raising the Festival Centre curtain to the existential vibe of Thus Sprach Zarathustra was inspired. Within minutes the richly-costumed cast were belting out 'This is gonna be the best day of my life'. The colour, swagger, silliness, and sheer joy of panto swept the audience along with its unique brand of affirmation.

This version of Robin Hood, written by the am drams' own Susie Hayhurst, pared the plot to the bone: archery contest, Robin captured, Maid Marion lost, Robin rescued, lovers reunited. 

That left scope for her characters to make much entertaining mischief with their shenanigans. There was hearty booing and cheering aplenty; gags ancient and modern; and above all much gleeful song and dance – including two imaginative set pieces involving a score of youngsters from the Junior Theatre Workshop.

Evil was presented through the crowd-pleasing antics of Jon Edwards’ Sheriff of Nottingham and his sidekick Mrs Thieves, whip-in-hand tax collector who may or may not have fibbed on her CV - played with appropriate menace and a lyrical Welsh accent by Ceri Bugg. Their duet melding ‘The best things in life are free’ with ‘Money makes the world go around’ was a treat wrapped in villainous shrieks.

Mim Emmas as Will Scarlett’s aunt Tilly Tuck made a surprisingly effective dame, with not so much slapstick but great heart - and some well-judged saucy flirtation with her pick on the front row. She was in fine operatic voice, too, for her solo ‘I am what I am, I’m my own special creation.’

Kat George’s Robin Hood put her yearning for Maid Marion into a passionate delivery of the Barry Manilow song ‘Weekend in New England’ - albeit from a ghostly dungeon swarming with rats. And Kat Turner as Alan-a-Dale put to bed a long-running joke about not being able to hold a tune, eventually getting by beautifully ‘With a little help from my friends’.

Musical director Matt Baker packed the show with cleverly placed musical snippets, often understated, sometimes not even voiced. They were delivered by a cast which performed as fluently as the multiple elaborate set changes.

A few ‘shout-outs’ during one of those changes were for a couple in the audience celebrating 52 years of marriage and another who had just given birth to twins (thankfully not in the audience). It made a salient point about panto like this being an entertainment for all ages.