It may be dark and cold outside, but the energy and enjoyment given off from the Abingdon Drama Club is enough to warm up even the most evil of hearts!

Any opening-night nerves were quickly forgotten as the actors embodied their roles to deliver their greatly entertaining pantomime, in the magical atmosphere of Abingdon’s beautiful Unicorn Theatre. Director Alex Jenkins has meticulously used the small stage in a way that showcases every performer, allowing many stars to shine.

An audience favourite (myself included) is definitely the Prince, portrayed by Curtis Manners. From his first entrance, a smoulder is plastered onto Manners’ face and the extravagant character is maintained throughout the show with confidence, style and charm. His comedic timing, amusing expressions and exceptional stage presence lead to hilarious moments throughout the performance. The chorus completely embrace his charisma by singing a camp, flirtatious and cheeky rendition of ‘Hey Mickey’ whilst swooning for the Prince. Dame Bunting (Allen Dannfald) is also exceedingly well-suited to his role, giving a fabulous performance without any reservation! The Dame manages to be a precise balance of flamboyant yet still very amiable, which is a pleasure to watch.

Abingdon Drama Club makes sure that the audience feel at ease and they tick all of the pantomime boxes with vocal audience participation of hissing and booing the villains; we were shouting ‘behind you’ or ‘oh no you won’t’ at the top of our lungs and chuckling all the way through as characters broke the fourth wall to welcome us into their enchanted world. On opening night, the audience were so invested in the characters that some catch-phrases were preempted by the end of the show!

As Snow White and Buttons, Grace Jastrzebski and Jessica Dunne are delightful performers with excellent chemistry. Their pure voices blend sweetly together, and the pair are extremely comfortable on the stage. The entire cast are clearly well bonded, seeming like a family as they work together and rescue each other from any potential hiccups with impressive quick-thinking! The spine-tinglingly evil Queen, Jon Crowley, has mastered the wicked cackle and terrifying stare-down, whilst relishing in the audience’s hisses with fantastic villainy, and the seven DOORFS (you’ll have to see the show to find out what that stands for!) are also great actors who personify their characters' names with individuality.

Richard Wilson’s hilarious words are brought to life by so many brilliant performers in amusing ways that appeal to an audience of all ages. There are even some recent references to politics, Love Island etc. in this retelling of the classic tale, as should be expected of a panto! The feelgood show is a wonderful occasion for the community of Abingdon to unite together in a celebration of all that is good, with the cast sharing their enjoyment with the audience.

I may not have a magic mirror that is able to rhyme, but I can say with confidence that this panto’s worth your time!