Cinderella Pantomime At Poole Lighthouse Review

Reviewed by Lisa

‘He’s behind you! Oh no he isn’t! Oh yes he is!’ I love a good panto, and I decided to take my 7 year old daughter for her first experience of it this year, and she loved it too! We watched the 7pm showing of Cinderella at Poole Lighthouse, sitting fairly near the front. The magic started straight away with dancers coming on to the stage in their bright clothes and lots of singing and dancing throughout, using well known songs just sometimes with the lyrics changed. The panto contained everything you expect to see – the ugly sisters (men dressed up) in hideous dresses, lots of audience participation, being taught a song, and lots of boo-ing and ‘it’s behind you’ moments. There were many jokes – some cringy but lots of funny ones too and they used local knowledge and current affairs within these to relate to the audience. Some of my favourite parts was when Buttons did a great impression of King Charles, and also when he used props to make conversations funnier. Buttons, played by CBeebies star Chris Jarvis (who also wrote and directed the pantomime) really held the show together. Cinderella (Charlotte Wood) had a great voice, with the fairy Godmother (Lauren Azania) having a powerful, amazing voice that wowed us all.

We had such a good evening, and made great memories together. I was a little worried it would be too scary for my daughter as she gets frightened quite easily, but there were no real scary moments included which was brilliant. While I found elements of the first half a little slow, her favourite part was the end of this where Cinderella gets transformed for the ball, and lifts up high in to the sky while the carriage is ‘drawn’ on to her dress before seeing real horses pull a carriage on stage behind her. She comes down, gets in, and the interval begins at this point. The interval was 20 minutes long, and there was the option to buy New Forest ice cream within the theatre, or chocolate and drinks in the foyer. There was also a merchandise stand selling things like lights on sticks that could be used during the performance.

Poole Lighthouse is easy to get to, and there is a multistorey car park right next door which, although tight to get in to, is so convenient. The lighthouse itself has a restaurant and bar and the theatre has tiered seating inside with around 600 seats, so there is a good view from everywhere. The show lasted 2 hours and 20 minutes including the interval. They have a variety of times and performance to choose between, and a relaxed performance on the 20th December as well. I think the tickets are reasonably priced, coming in at between £14 and £28.

Overall I would definitely recommend this pantomime, especially for families. The kids can be as loud as they want, it’s fun for all ages, and it leaves you feeling Christmassy! We will definitely be going back next year to see Aladdin!

Rating: 5/5

Tickets cost from £14 – £28 (including transaction fee).

Cinderella is at Poole Lighthouse theatre in Poole, Dorset from 8th – 31st December.
For more information or to book tickets visit www.lighthousepoole.co.uk or call the box office on 01202 280000