CINDERELLA | PLEASURE BEACH GLOBE THEATRE, BLACKPOOL
★★★
“Loud and lush, this Cinderella will have the kids shouting with glee…”
Big, bold and with an abundant serving of razzle-dazzle, Cinderella at Blackpool Pleasure Beach is one of a kind, its lavish set pieces bringing musical theatre, circus and comedy together in a high jinx romp played out on the distinctive circular stage of the Globe Theatre.
Dave Cross, a bolshy in-yer-face Buttons, is first on that stage to warm the audience up ahead of the main event; call outs are rehearsed, a boo for the evil Stepmother and a cry of ‘Mingers’ accompanied by pointed fingers whenever the wicked stepsisters show up, and a communal Mexican wave arrive on stage. It’s a taste of the high energy high jinx to come.
Suitably warmed up, the main event begins with an eye-catching opening number. The ensemble carry hand-held spotlights as Buttons swings high above their heads on a trapeze. Simultaneously, a shadow-play unfolds on the three giant digital screens that sit atop the huge, multi-levelled staging that boasts no fewer than four stairways and multiple exits and entrances.
Adam Slevin and Alexa Robinson’s frenetic direction ensure that the 20 strong company never let the pace drop in this colourful – primary colours abound – production, which is arguably the best dressed show around. Producers Stageworks Worldwide Productions also ensure it’s gorgeously lit, with a thumping soundtrack that keeps feet tapping.
If Slevin’s script truncates the tale of Cinderella to make way for choreographer Lynsey Brown’s well-drilled song and dance numbers, it also ensures the piece flows well though in doing so prevents any real character development during its 80 minute running time, unusually for a pantomime it’s presented as a one-act show.
When we meet Cinders, she’s doing what she loves best, painting, but it’s not long before her father, Baron Hardup, played by Tyler Thompson who is perhaps too youthful for the role, arrives with the news he has remarried. Cue evil stepmother Drusilla, a sensual and sophisticated turn by Kelsey-Beth Crossley, and the gaudy wicked stepsisters, Scarlett and Celeste, played as spoiled brats by the flouncing James Colebrook and Chris O’Mara. Both glory in their badness.
In the title role, Sarah Ward makes an elegant Cinders, and has a pleasant singing voice which compliments that of her Prince Charming, Ashley Luke Lloyd. Elsewhere, with no Fairy Godmother to be seen, it falls to Ian Oswald as trainee Fairy Godfather, Abriel, to save the day and get Cinders to the ball – he even makes sure Buttons gets a girl too. All of which, with a nod to Wally K Daly’s 1974 pantomime nativity, Follow The Star, earns him his wings as he becomes a fully fledged Fairy Godfather.
A mention must also go to Hot Ice Show legend Alexi Kofanov, celebrating 21 years with the Pleasure Beach, who provides the more spectacular circus elements of the production, from straps to silks he soars through the air in breathtaking displays that add to the thrill of the piece.
Lush and loud, this Cinderella is a roller coaster of songs, dance and funnies that will have the kids in the audience shouting with glee.
In partnership with Avanti West Coast Book HERE – Connecting Must See Theatre in Edinburgh, Blackpool and Beyond
Run Ends 24 December 2025 Tickets HERE
