Jack and the Beanstalk review – sass, sparkle and fee-fi-fo fun sock it to the baddies
Lyric Hammersmith, London A sinister giant computer and a meat-eating headmaster have a sinister plan for shy Jack and his schoolfriends. Meanwhile, the Fairy Godfather has the hots for the...
By Anya Ryan · The Guardian Culture
Lyric Hammersmith, London A sinister giant computer and a meat-eating headmaster have a sinister plan for shy Jack and his schoolfriends. Meanwhile, the Fairy Godfather has the hots for the dame This is not your bog-standard Jack and the Beanstalk. In Sonia Jalaly’s version, the story has been picked up and dropped into a school in Hammersmith, run by the meat-loving monster Fleshcreep (John Partridge, who wears a salami-printed suit). There’s no giant either; just a colossus computer system hidden in the sky, built to wipe children’s brains of all their imagination. It’s all good fun and games, but at times you long for a little familiarity. Still, with the truly wonderful Fairy Godfather (Jade Hackett) at the front and centre of this production, it would take a real Scrooge not to be taken in by all the festivity. Hackett combines wizardry with wisdom to serve up one of the most commanding turns I’ve ever seen on a panto stage. Continue reading...