CAODS’ latest festive offering for panto season is “Sinbad Saves The Day”, a rip roaring sea faring adventure in a setting Scheherazade would be proud of! I went in excited as I had fond memories of the DreamWorks animated movie of Sinbad, and I’m delighted to say, the cast and crew delivered an engaging and family fun filled pantomime.

The plot this time being that Sinbad and his trusty friend Mani have arrived back on land to see their childhood sweethearts, and are shocked to hear an evil Sultan has captured children and is keeping them in his palace. So begins a story of friendship and pasties set to a fun mix of dance songs and “Oh no you didn’t” moments.

The titular character of Sinbad is always associated with swashbuckling tales, and Kofi Tyrell-Richards played him with a warm charm that was very endearing to the audience. His playful camaraderie with Mani played by George Sales (a superb comedy casting choice and packing a very powerful and tuneful voice) put me in mind of the two characters in another DreamWorks film “Road to El Dorado”, and they bounced off each other well.

Daisy Parker delivered a well crafted take on the princess role she had, and Maddie Cox complimented her with another endearing performance. The four leads were a nice deviation from the standard principal pair and watching the ensemble, you could tell they had a strong working friendship that gave the production a warm cosy feeling.

The cast kept the pace up, and the production was filled with energy and zip from the fast paced musical numbers, and well executed dance choreography. The two skeletons’ ballet scene to “Danse Macabre” being an highlight.

The young chorus elicited a wave of laughs and aww’s in equal measure as Sinbad’s rats being sadly escorted from his ship on the princesses’s orders, and a special mention to the young chorus member playing a mean set of bongos during a group number! Great rhythm!

Paul Stevens and Anita Davies leant their considerable performing experience to the dame roles respectfully. They interacted well with the crowd, though I will say Paul’s shrill tones sometimes lost a punchline or two, lovely frock not withstanding. “When you wish upon a star” was the standout singing point in the show.

The performance that may well linger long in the memory came from Edward Nash. From the moment the evil Sultan oozed onstage, every crumb was devoured in a gloriously energetic and traditional hammy panto performance that came from an actor having an absolute ball with their part. The fact that we never saw the sultan get his commupance, and that the plot resolved itself largely offstage was, I feel, a sad missed opportunity in an otherwise fun and enjoyable script. Some of the songs could also have been louder.

The panto was a well put together effort by director and writer Gwen Stevens, who swapped out the usual pop culture references and occasional adult jokes for a more traditional effort that largely succeeded. 

The script may have not been laugh a minute, but I was left with a nice comforted feeling watching a cast that clearly enjoyed what they were putting on, and enjoying entertaining a room full of people.

I wish them well on the rest of their run, and urge people to get the tickets that are left!