Search

Saved articles

You have not yet added any article to your bookmarks!

Browse articles

GDPR Compliance

We use cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. By continuing to use our site, you accept our use of cookies, Privacy Policy, and Terms of Service.

Beauty and the Beast

 
Joy Watters Review by Joy Watters 3 Published: 5 Dec 2024 Multiple Venues Show Dates: 28 Nov 2024-31 Dec 2024

This year marks a decade of Bard In The Botanics pantos at the Byre as the Glasgow-based company journeys east again with its special brand of festive fun. Written and directed by Bard’s Gordon Barr, we are taken off to Fantasia where all is not well and the Beast has not yet found the love of a good woman.

Elements of the original story wrapped up in a big panto parcel of songs, dances and jokes

The ancient fairy tale of Beauty and The Beast has inspired a host of versions on stage and in film all over the world. Here there are elements of the original story wrapped up in a big panto parcel of songs, dances and jokes. Humour is definitely to the fore as the show boasts not one but two Dames.

Eimi Quinn’s Belle (Beauty) is a nae nonsense modern lass combining her sass with a lovely singing voice. Her mother is the bonkers Bunty Bahookie, played by Alan Steele, returning to the Byre to play daft Dame. Steele is a delight, well, probably not for the men in the audience who take the Dame’s fancy! The traditional dame-ing nonsense is interspersed with utterly hilarious off-script whimsy.

Stephen Arden makes a rather fetching bad fairy Belladonna Nightshade (so bad, they named her twice) It seems you can never have too many men dressed up as women at Christmas.

The young cast, two teams of twelve, ably provide villagers, castle servants and teenage girls with Mean Girl vibes bringing the community into the cast.

Related to this article:

Location:

Performances

The Blurb:

Brought to you from the creators of all the much-loved Byre pantos since 2014.

Fantasia is in beastly bother once again! But will our trusty heroine be able to make sure that everything comes up roses?

True love might defeat the baddies in every other panto but in this festive fable, we’ve got a Belle who isn’t exactly in the mood and her mum who is sassy, brassy and in no way classy.

One thing’s for sure – there will be singing, dancing and a bunch of laughs for everyone.