The Brothers Grimm Spectacularthon’s anarchic humour takes fractured fairy tales to the extreme in this very funny production. This is not the traditional pantomime you might expect when the Brothers Grimm are included in the title, but all the well-known characters are there….somewhere.

David Giles’ directorial debut with Venture is an energetic and enthusiastic offering of this play written by Don Zolidis.  His eight person cast conjures up dozens of characters between them.  Lucy Marshallsay and Luke Wagner as Narrators 1 and 2 guide the audience (as much as ever-changing circumstances will allow) through the original Brothers Grimm’s versions of the fairy tales, and also play roles within those tales.  The ensemble of Kirsty Mundy, Kim Stewart, Shelley Carman, James Hanna, Tom Watson and Leanne Albers throw themselves into their myriad roles with great gusto, some surprising accents and hilarious results.  

A minimalist approach to costumes (basic black for all) and a stage set comprising one or two black boxes and a sprinkling of props really worked.  Anything more would have got in the way of the frenetic action.

Highlights for me were Rapunzel, Hansel and Gretel, Slappy the Dwarf, the audience member judge, the Frog Prince, Snow White and/or Sleeping Beauty, and the whole cast of Cinderella.

This was a very entertaining evening for the audience and I think the cast enjoyed it too.

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