The Stage

Mother Goose

Published Friday 4 December 2009 at 13:10 by John di Folco

It’s Mother Goose in rock-pop panto mode at the Byre, served up with a magical mix of unflagging pizzazz, oomph and great dollops of fun that not so much engage an audience as engulf it. Holding fast - just -to the traditional message of steering a bumpy, roller coaster ride through that old moral maze of love versus vanity and greed, this cracker of a show, imaginatively and tightly directed by Lawrie McNicoll, is very much the sum of its individual talents.

Nicola Auld as the evil, scheming Narcissa salivating after roast goose for Christmas lunch is horribly convincing. Poured into a tight fitting two-piece black and bile-green outfit, she has a mobile facial vocabulary and a chandelier-shattering voice that guarantee instant boos.

Stephen Docherty strides confidently into a big, bold, colourful and loveable lead role. Hugely funny, constantly rapid-firing gags that have a genuine spontaneous feel to them, he also delivers a finely nuanced performance. The rest of the young professional cast swirl and whirl with high octane energy around him, with lots of upbeat dance routines, laced with loads of current street cred references, but not always at their strongest in the lyrics. Best Byre panto for years.