JACK & THE BEANSTALK
THE BOXFORD PANTO 2024!
Come and see what’s at the top of the Beanstalk!
Jack Potts is a poor farmboy who lives with his mum on a smallholding in Suffolk. Mr Grubbypaws, the evil landlord, is demanding the rent which they don’t have. Mr Grubbypaws’ two henchmen, Ron and Sid, threaten Jack and his mum if they don’t pay up. Although Mrs Potts sells milk from their cow and vegetables from the land, it’s never enough to pay the rent. What is she to do?
They hatch a plan which leads to Jack getting his hands on some magic beans from an Old Man he meets up with on the way to market. Although his mum is dubious, Jack is convinced he can solve their financial worries if his mum just believes in the beans. What can possibly go wrong?
Come and watch Jack and his mum, his friends and of course their cow, Daisy as they romp through this improbable tale.
Ticket information:
Wednesday 4th December (no meal) £8
Thursday 5th December to Saturday 7th December £18 with traditional Christmas dinner served to your table in the interval.
Tickets will be available from Boxford Post Office from Tuesday October 1st.
JACK & THE BEANSTALK
Some things in life are intrinsic British traditions: the ravens at the Tower of London, fish and chips, rain when you’ve planned a BBQ. Christmas in the Box River Benefice really wouldn’t be Christmas without a trip to the annual Boxford Drama Group pantomime.
We’re all aware of the story of Jack and the Beanstalk but this version, penned by Joe Barrett, delightfully meandered off on its own winding path, as befits the ancient storytelling style of oral folklore. The original story itself has undergone many changes (researchers estimate the core tale of Jack and the Giant to be more than 5,000 years old!) and the original standout line of “Fee-Fi-Fo-Fum! I smell the blood of an Englishman” was actually penned by Shakespeare in 1604 (King Lear). The inherent comparisons between The Bard and Mr. Barrett aside, this version was hilarious and lovingly performed by a cast clearly keen to run with it.
Alison Barlow fabulously played the role of Jack Potts together with her (his!) exuberant sidekicks, Simon (Harry Hodson-Barnes) and Sissy (Bronwen Cottrell). Jack’s mother Mrs Potts (Nick Elliott yet again showing the world how to do drag properly) is in dire straits. With the family cow (hilariously played by husband and wife team James and Angela Tolputt to the delight of the audience) barely producing any milk and with the greedy, evil landlord (Mike Keith as Mr. Grubbypaws) threatening to unleash his violent heavies if no rent money is forthcoming, Mrs. Potts tells Jack to sell the cow to raise much-needed funds. Mention has to be made here of Elaine Horne and Will Carpenter’s hilarious show-stealing thugs, Ron and Sid, who had the audience in stitches every time they popped up on stage to cajole and menace with barely-restrained malevolence.
Having fallen foul of a strange old man’s smooth sales patter (Jeremy Morgan hardly needing to act here), Jack and pals soon face the all-encompassing terror of consumption by David Philip’s towering and booming Giant (a unique vision that’s still popping up in this reviewer’s dreams). Rescued by Mrs. Giant (Elaine Carpenter) and discovering the unique golden ovulatory talents of the Giant’s magical hen, Team Jack pilfer the clucker and rescue young captive Freda (Lenka Netopilikova) from her Oirish-goblin-gaoler Slugmuncher (Hannah Carpenter) before heading back to finally face nasty old Grubbypaws and live happily ever after. Aww.
It is always a genuine delight to watch these delightful actors donning the greasepaint, treading the boards and being very, very silly all in the name of entertainment, and they do it with an accomplished self-irreverent style that is all their own. Thank you to all of the cast and crew (including Dawn Mace and her team for the interval Christmas dinner), for a wonderful night out and as always, a cracking start to Christmas in the Benefice.
Boxford Drama Group’s next production will be Elaine Horne’s time-flipping double-play, Now and Then, on 27th, 28th and 29th March 2025.
Thank you to Jeremy Morgan for the photos.