With the festive period in full swing, nothing quite says "Merry Christmas" like the smell of a mulled wine, the sound of carols, the twinkling lights adorning the grounds of Battersea power station and a woman dressed as Moo-Deng hurling various insults at a drag queen. Panto season is here everyone and it’s back with a bang! Oh no it isn’t. OH YES IT IS! A final offering from the recently announced to close Turbine theatre in Battersea (a venue very special to me), The Liar, The Bitch and The Wardrobe is a riotous evening of entertainment which, for what it lacks in festiveness, makes up for in bonkers campery at the most wonderful time of the year.
Over recent years, Panto season has begun to move away from ‘fun for all the family’ in favour of ‘fun for those who don’t take things too seriously and are willing to laugh at a lion with a BBL’. Essentially, it’s one for the girlies and the gays. This show takes the classic, whimsical tale of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe (if you didn’t guess from the title?!) and does what any Panto does best - throw a load of glitter at it and fill it with a load innuendo. It’s silly, it’s absurd and it’s just the ticket to get you into the festive spirit. With a relatively long run time of 2 hours 40 including interval, not every joke lands, it feels slightly dragged out in places and there are certainly moments which have audience members sucking in their breath at the mention of a controversial subject, but you can’t help but find joy in the comedy laced into the script, with both the writing and physicality.
Traditional Panto may be celebrated for its grandeur, but this production is ambitiously undertaken by a cast of 4 who all take on various roles. Holly Ashman is a standout in the cast, clearly a very experienced comedy performer with her ability to switch accents second to none. Never did I think I’d find myself praising a hippo in a gilet in my reviews, but here I am! Gant Cartwright is devilishly glamorous as the Bitch and other characters, while Yannick Budd and Conor Hadley are incredibly funny in the roles of Edward and Peter. It’s a custom for things to go wrong within Panto and the last 20 minutes with a spillage incident with Yannick kept the audience howling. The ability to not take yourself too seriously in these moments is so important and this was handled wonderfully. The set is minimal but clever in the sense that it also multi roles like its characters, flipping around to transform the set. With a theatre as small as The Turbine, you have to find ways to be creative with space, something to be admired in this production and many of those before.
This show should be praised for its ability to take basically every Panto trope and run with it while injecting a 18 + twist. Parody songs taken from this year's most celebrated discography and riddled with puns, audience participation which sends the chosen victim cringing, a sing along with everyone involved, a lot of ‘oh yes he is!’, ‘he’s behind you!’, ‘boos and hisses, And a classic dame repeat back every time they enter the stage. It’s nothing original in style but this is why so many return to panto year after year. The jokes might not be what you saw in Aladdin circa 2010, but the ability to feel that childlike sense of glee in a very adult environment should be welcomed.
Overall, the ability to not take yourself or the material too seriously is imperative for enjoying this show. If you have nostalgia for the original book… then this show might not be for you. However. if you fancy some festive fun celebrating queerness with a brilliant small cast and a nod to all the years best (and worst) memes then this might be just the ticket for you.
The Liar, The Bitch and The Wardrobe runs at The Turbine Theatre until 22nd December - for tickets and more information, you can follow the link here.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (4*)
Gifted tickets in return for an honest review
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