Lettuces and glitter poop - it's the Everyman Panto
Rapunzel at Liverpool's Everyman Theatre | Latest NW arts news
One of the many special things about live theatre is the shared experience. The reaction of the audience around you contributes to the atmosphere, and for a short time a group of strangers with their different lives, worries, views and interests are all locked into the same encounter. Even more special is sharing this with someone you care about, so it was a huge treat to watch my children’s faces during the Everyman Rock ’n’ Roll panto this week.
But just because you’ve all seen the same thing doesn’t mean you have the same opinion. As you’ll see in my review below, I’ve given it four stars. My seven-year-old son thinks I have this very wrong and it actually deserves five. He says “it was so funny I felt off my chair”, which I can confirm he did do for dramatic affect several times during the performance. His favourite bit I was something I haven’t even mentioned in my review - but that’s more so it doesn’t spoil the gag than because I didn’t share his amusement (for those who have already seen it, I’ll just give you the clue ‘tiny prince’).
So maybe one day I’ll get him to write the review and I’ll be out of a job, but judging by how long it takes to get him to do his homework I’ll be safe for a while yet.
I had a lot of fun recently researching the history of the Everyman panto - and interviewing Adam Keast who has starred in the show for the past 22 years - for this piece in The Stage. I’ve linked to it here in case you’re interested but it is behind a paywall - although you can read a certain number of free articles each month of you enter your email address.
REVIEW: Rapunzel, Everyman Theatre, Liverpool ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Rapunzel. You know the one. Evil witch takes a baby as penance for a couple stealing lettuce from her garden, and traps her in a tower where she’s forced to grow her hair really long until a handsome prince arrives to save her?
Nope, it’s the one where two rival hairdressers fight it out to become the best stylist in Liverpool, while the girl in the tower attempts to escape by charging hairbrushes with magic as she combs them through her luscious locks.
This is the Everyman Rock ’n’ Roll panto. They do things differently here.
All the crucial elements of the traditional story are in the plot - the hair, the tower, even the lettuce - but they’ve been popped inside a cocktail shaker with a bag of glitter and given a good jiggle.
Adam Keast marks his 22nd year in the annual show - these days he’s almost as much of an institution as the panto - in glitzy green and a tiny pair of wings. As Fairy Fixer Upper, he’s as fizzy with energy as ever, whether picking on an unfortunate member of the audience (take a bow, Rob), leading the cast on a musical quest to find the Scottish ‘follicle’ (not oracle) Hairy Fairy or playing bass guitar in the band.
This is one of the Everyman Panto’s signature features - when the cast members aren’t playing their parts on stage, they’re playing their instruments on a balcony above it. This year’s soundtrack includes everything from The Beatles to Shania Twain, with some Alesha Dixon in the middle.
Ai Kumar’s Rapunzel is surprisingly well-balanced for someone who has spent her whole life hanging out in a massive four-poster bed in a tower above her “uncle” Danny Ruff’s salon. Perhaps that’s because she is unaware that he tricked her mum Debbie Updo (Michael Starke) to sign her future away for a lettuce during a particularly intense pregnancy craving.
Zoe West plays this blue-quiffed, Oasis-quoting embodiment of toxic masculinity with Mancunian relish, threatening the audience if they dare to boo.
Meanwhile, rival Scouse hairdresser Debbie is a triumphant return to the Everyman Panto for Starke, who played here in the 1990s. He pouts, saunters, grumbles and relishes every hair-related pun - there are many. He is upstaged only by his wardrobe, which features a permanently lifted-up Marilyn-style white frock and a meat dress a la Lady Gaga, complete with strings of sausages wrapped around Debbie’s Uggs. And that in turn is only upstaged by Hairy Fairy’s attire - basically an enormous wig that’s gradually revealed as she’s raised through a trapdoor in the stage.
There’s the obligatory handsome suitor, Prince Timotei (Ben Boskovic) - though this one is from Wallasey (pronounced “Wallas-ay” because he’s posh), carries a tiny trumpet on a retractable lanyard and rides a curly-horned ram). But the real, if unconventional, love interest is Debbie’s assistant Trevor, played by Tomi Ogbaro, who has arguably the best singing voice in the show.
There are a few niggles. Despite their obvious chemistry, Keast and Starke aren’t given enough opportunity to bounce off each other. The second half has a definite plot but the first half doesn’t clearly point to it. One amusing thing follows another but there’s no obvious arc. And oddly, despite knowing the both the secret exit to her tower and the password to open it, Rapunzel and pal Laurie (Rebecca Levy) wait around to be rescued by two men. But it’s not like the original fairytale was an examplar of continuity - just how did the witch get into the tower before Rapunzel’s hair was long enough to climb up? - and the big characters, daft jokes and general silliness make up for any holes.
The Everyman Rock ’n’Roll panto is an institution but it doesn’t rest on its reputation. It’s an early Christmas present that keeps sparkling well into the new Year.
Rapunzel is at the Everyman Theatre in Liverpool until Saturday, January 18, 2025.
Latest arts news
🔊 A celebration of Liverpool’s sound system culture is being led by Writing on the Wall at Toxteth Library tonight (Saturday, November 23). The evening of discussion, deejays and dancing marks the end of a Black History Month project exploring how 1970s and 80s Liverpool 8 reverberated with music played from powerful homemade sound systems, providing the soundtrack and force behind all night parties in local spaces’.
🌇 Twenty-five dot-art members will be showcasing their work in its gallery in Queen Avenue, Liverpool, from the end of this week. The pieces in Liverpool Collection 2024 will reflects the beauty and diversity of the city and its surrounding region - and they’re all for sale.
🎨 If you’re planning a trip south soon then abstract painter Nicola Wood, who grew up in Crosby and studied art in Southport and Manchester, has two solo exhibitions: Patterns on Paper at Messums West in Tisbury, Berkshire, until December 13, and Abstract Paintings at Messums London from November 20 to December 7.
In case you missed it
Now booking
Book now if you can for David Hockney’s Bigger & Closer (not smaller & further away), a personal journey through 60 years of his art at Aviva Studios in Manchester - because this is going to be a popular ticket.
His process will be revealed in a cycle of six themed chapters, featuring his most iconic images alongside lesser-seen pieces and newly-created work. A deeply personal running commentary by the artist is paired with an original score by Nico Muhly, and the show is directed by Mark Grimmer of 59 Productions. It runs from December 10 to January 25, 2025. Tickets start at £20 for adults and £10 concessions. Children under two go free. Book here.
Last chance to see
Visitors have just six weeks left to visit Liverpool’s International Slavery Museum and Maritime Museum, which will be closing their doors for a period of essential repair and maintenance works from Sunday, January 5, ahead of a major redevelopment project, subject to funding. Both museums are due to reopen in 2028.
Thank you for reading the 107th edition of Stored Honey. If you enjoyed what you read then please hit the ❤️ button as it helps to get the edition shown more widely.
I’m off now to get my kids’ school’s Christmas Fayre ready to open for visitors. In the meantime, you can get hold of me on Instagram, on Bluesky, in the comments or by replying to this email.
Have a great week,
Laura
P.S. Liverpool's top ten most Instagrammed street art murals - and where they are