Theatre / Reviews
Review: Mother Goose, The Duke of York’s Theatre – ‘Ian McKellen and John Bishop delight in this avant-garde retelling of the classic fable’
With fairies, singalongs and vibrant costumes, what at first may seem like regular panto frivolity is laced with new ideas, themes and technical prowess in this new production of Mother Goose, set to transfer from the West End to Bristol Hippodrome on April 12.
However, as hilarious and chaotic as the show is for an adult audience, it may leave the younger audiences crying “what about us?”
Writer Jonathan Harvey has crash-landed the story of Mother Goose firmly into the present day, with much of the story being set in an abandoned Debenhams turned animal sanctuary lovingly run by Caroline and Victor Goose, played by McKellen and Bishop.
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When threatened with huge bills from the dreaded energy company, the couple along with their son Jack (Oscar Conlon-Morrey) and their collection of misfit creatures must find some revenue or else face homelessness.
Enter a menopausal golden egg-laying goose. Far from a traditional pantomime set-up, the beginning of this story actually presents a very real and serious social commentary on these issues. The political jabs are frequent in the first few scenes, perhaps too much so. The most notable of these comes in the form of a puppet pig with the hair and voice of Boris Johnson, lurching out of a kitchen cabinet in search of a party.
We’re soon out of Debenhams though and taken on a wild ride to the Tower of London, enchanted forests, The Oscars and the world cup final before taking a flight to Gooseland, a heavenly kingdom ruled by an exuberant and beautifully sarcastic King Goose, played brilliantly by Adam Brown.
There’s nothing short of brilliant about the two central performances. Ian McKellen is fantastic in the titular role and really gives himself over to the comedy. There’s a hilarious meta idea running through the whole show, and as such the character gets Lord of the Rings flashbacks, starts reciting Shakespearian verse etc…
She’s also responsible for the most heartfelt moment of the show, where through her, McKellen recounts his first panto experience and then goes on to sing a verse from Annie’s Tomorrow. He’s surely the main draw to anyone wanting to see show and he knows it, but he certainly doesn’t disappoint.
Bishop too, in his West-End debut, is just excellent as Vic. He does the panto bits as if he was born to it, and together, he and McKellen have all the chemistry of a tried and tested comedy duo.
Elsewhere, there are brilliant performances from Oscar Conlon-Morrey and Simbi Akande and Jack and Jill, whose over the top cliched romance is perfectly executed and only matched by their singing ability.
Anna Jane Casey is truly captivating as Cilla the goose. She has such great energy and humour, and her singing is world class. The ensemble of animals is wonderfully put together, and although they only have minor roles, each animal has a clear personality, and this – combined with Liz Ascroft’s vivid costuming – works well.
The chaos and sporadicity of the plot makes it impossible to paraphrase, but in no way is that a negative against the piece. I loved the mayhem of it all; the left-turns or surprise characters that only take up seconds of runtime but leave the audience in hysterics.
Harvey clearly has a very good mind for comedy, and apart from a couple of slapstick moments, this is mostly shown through quick witted gags and word plays. Of course, there are moments of crassness and smut, but these, combined with the more well-constructed comic moments, make for a thoroughly entertaining show.
There are great set pieces, like the Goose’s attempt to bake a cake, or a scene set on an aeroplane which is mounted on a tilting frame, creating a very turbulent family scene in the second act. In fact, there are so many moments of brilliance that although the show is perhaps a tad longer than it ought to have been, I found myself thoroughly engaged and entertained throughout.
However, I must address the one glaring issue that I had – namely the production’s neglect for child-friendly humour. One of the hardest parts of putting on a pantomime is walking that line between kid’s and adult’s humour. You want fun, messy moments that kids will really get into and at the same time, jokes which will naturally go over their heads. I’m afraid to say that I would not take a child to see Mother Goose.
Apart from a few moments there really isn’t much that I could see a younger viewer understanding, and as brilliant as I found the writing, if you’re going to advertise your show as a traditional pantomime you must adhere to certain restraints.
There’s something very chic about this production, it’s classy and very West-End. I would describe what Harvey and director Cal McCrystal have created here as a sort of post-pantomime, not quite flipping the script on tradition, but doing something groundbreaking.
A star-studded cast like this one with that modern approach to comedy is a recipe for success. I would urge anyone to see this show, but it may be a case of leaving the little ones at home.
Mother Goose is at Bristol Hippodrome from April 12-16; showtimes vary. For more information and tickets, go to www.atgtickets.com.
All photos: Manuel Harlan
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