Stratford East Theatre, Stratford, London – until 4th January 2025
Reviewed by Bobbi Fenton
4****
What better way to get into the Christmas spirit than going to the theatre for a bit of panto. Pinocchio follows the classic tale of a wooden puppet boy on his journey towards becoming a real human boy. In the town of Stratty Ash lives a lonely widower, Geppetto (Tok Morakinyo), who used to dream of raising a son with his late wife. As luck would have it, he happens upon a magical piece of wood which he carves into a wooden puppet, not expecting that this same puppet will come to life. Geppetto tries his best to raise Pinocchio (Dylan Collymore), but he still faces many of the same conflicts most children will experience. Pinocchio battles with his conscience and whether he should do the right thing or the fun thing, often being led astray by the Sly Fox (Rushand Chambers) and Miss Kat (Jhanaica Van Mook). Luckily, this wooden puppet has a very useful trick up his sleeve which I’m sure many parents would wish for their own children, a nose that grows whenever he tells a lie.
Leading the breaks in the show for some very fun sing alongs and dances are the animated and cheery Krik-Krak the cricket (Nicole Louise Lewis) and the hilarious Blue Rinse Fairy (Michael Bertenshaw). While this show doesn’t feature quite as many jokes for the grown-ups in the audience that are typical for panto, it makes up for this with beautiful vocals and fun dances. I especially enjoyed the various duets sung by Dylan Collymore and Tok Morakinyo, as their voices are simply incredible. Not to mention the many dance scenes featuring the whole cast, which are almost hypnotic.
This show is truly magical and is the perfect panto for the whole family.