ALEX HALL is disgusted by the misuse of ‘emotional narratives’ to justify uninformed geo-political prejudice
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‘We need more laughter’
SUSAN DARLINGTON enjoys a boldly reconfigured classic
GREAT INTERACTIONS: (L to R) Divina De Campo and Billy Pearce
SUE TURNER welcomes a thoughtful, engaging book that lays bare the economic realities of global waste management
JOHN GREEN welcomes an insider account of the achievements and failures of the transition to democracy in Portugal
SIMON PARSONS applauds an imaginative and absorbing updating of Strindberg’s classic
PETER MASON is enthralled by an assembly of objects, ancient and modern, that have lain in the mud of London’s river
MICK McSHANE rubs shoulders with Mod legend Steve Craddock and joins in with the joyous Glasgow choir
DENNIS BROE sifts out the ideological bias of the newest TV series offerings, and picks out what to see, and what to avoid
Jack and the Beanstalk
Bradford Alhambra
THERE’S been debate in recent years about the role of the traditional pantomime dame. This centres on whether the character is still acceptable in an inclusive society or whether it perpetuates damaging gender stereotypes.
The casting of Divina De Campo in Jack and the Beanstalk, produced by Crossroads Pantomimes, could be seen as a response to this. A finalist in Ru Paul’s Drag Race UK, she brings musical theatre experience to her role as the Spirit of the Beans. Yet for all the gusto she brings to the musical numbers, her real strength is her interactions with Billy Pearce.
A star of the Alhambra’s festive production for two decades and counting (“you get less for murder!”), Pearce effectively plays himself as Farmer Billy Trot. His knockabout humour and constant ribbing tests the comedy muscles of his co-stars, with Divina more than holding her own (especially during a tongue-twister scene alongside an admirably straight-faced Sarah Goggin as Mrs Blunderbore).
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