A ball of a panto

York's Grand Opera House has returned with its annual panto and this year the show is Cinderella and the Lost Slipper
Grand Opera House York Panto 2018 Cinderella And The Lost Slipper. Pictured from the left are Danny Rogers as Dandini, Jack McGill as The Prince, Amy Thompson as Cinderella, John D Collins as The Baron, Michelle Heaton as The Fairy Godmother, Steve Wickenden as Calpol and Ken Morley as Covonia. Picture by David Harrison.Grand Opera House York Panto 2018 Cinderella And The Lost Slipper. Pictured from the left are Danny Rogers as Dandini, Jack McGill as The Prince, Amy Thompson as Cinderella, John D Collins as The Baron, Michelle Heaton as The Fairy Godmother, Steve Wickenden as Calpol and Ken Morley as Covonia. Picture by David Harrison.
Grand Opera House York Panto 2018 Cinderella And The Lost Slipper. Pictured from the left are Danny Rogers as Dandini, Jack McGill as The Prince, Amy Thompson as Cinderella, John D Collins as The Baron, Michelle Heaton as The Fairy Godmother, Steve Wickenden as Calpol and Ken Morley as Covonia. Picture by David Harrison.

The performance features superb singing and dancing, fantastic jokes and a Geordie Fairy Godmother.

Former Coronation Street star Ken Morley, playing one of the Ugly Sisters, pulled out of the press night show because of illness.

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But the cast coped admirably and his absence even added to the entertainment in the Twelve Days of Christmas scene which turned into a very energetic farce.

Grand Opera House York Panto 2018 Cinderella And The Lost Slipper. Pictured are Jack McGill as the Prince and Amy Thompson as Cinderella. Picture by David Harrison.Grand Opera House York Panto 2018 Cinderella And The Lost Slipper. Pictured are Jack McGill as the Prince and Amy Thompson as Cinderella. Picture by David Harrison.
Grand Opera House York Panto 2018 Cinderella And The Lost Slipper. Pictured are Jack McGill as the Prince and Amy Thompson as Cinderella. Picture by David Harrison.

Three, not four, of the cast ran around with Christmas presents, including five toilet rolls, two water pistols and six Brexit treaties. This scene was jaw achingly funny.

The popular scare scene features actors in a forest singing George Ezra’s song Shotgun during which a spider pops down from the ceiling. If the characters don’t see this, they then use their signature phrase, ”Well we’ll have to sing it again then, won’t we? Woo!”

This scene was also very well done and very enjoyable.

One of the main actors in the show was Amy Thompson as Cinderella. She has an incredibly powerful voice and does a good job of bringing Cinderella to life and is a great reason to see this show.

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Steve Wickenden, playing the Ugly Sisters, does a fantastic job and manages to keep adults in the audience entertained with his wit.

Michelle Heaton (the Fairy Godmother) and Jack McGill (Prince Charming) also wow the audience with their singing. The incredibly talented pair are great to watch.

Likeable John D (Baron Hardup) and Danny Rogers (Dandini) and the cast are backed up by talented dancers.

Martin Daniels (Buttons) is incredibly funny to watch and he performs well with the rest of the cast. He does a great job in the role of Buttons and also does some excellent magic.

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This show is good family entertainment and it is certainly worth seeing. Whether you like singing, dancing, humour or a bit of everything, this show is for you. It has already kicked off and runs until Sunday, January 5.

Report by Luke Smith, 13