Written and Directed by Johnny McKnight

Composition and Musical Direction by Alan Penman

Choreographed by Stephanie Fulton

Tickets from £24.50

After your twenty-fourth pantomime experience, things can become a touch predictable. The shouts and chants are a bit wearisome. The gags are almost unbearable. But Aladdin cures all of that. It glitters with energy and creativity in a manner so few pantomimes can truly capture. Under Karen Tennant’s neon and glitterball disco aesthetic, Aladdin is a shining beacon and top-quality entertainment. And should be a benchmark for others to work towards.

Panto can entertain and teach; it can broaden the eyes and experiences of those just starting their theatrical journeys. What the King of Panto Johnny McKnight and the Macroberts do with Aladdin is bring an accessible panto that speaks to everyone in the audience – and by heavens – cuts through the misery of the world outside with the best deliveries and humour out there.

The adrenaline surge of Aladdin’s sword-swiping and magic carpet-riding is present but tempered for the festive season. The Macroberts pantomime is played for comedy with McKnight’s script with a vein of family, whoever they may be, in this tender and heartfelt story. The washhouse remains, however, as does the dreaded cave of wonders and mystery which houses the magic lamp.

There are few, if any, others with such an affinity and immediacy in their connection with the audience. A sign of grand showmanship, with a wit and self-deprecation which can disarm even the most miserable of Scrooges in the crowds, McKnight takes the panto dame to new heights as Marge, with their writing, direction, and performance creating a field of openness and creativity around them as they own every inch of the main stage. From the jokes to the pop-cultural references, audience interactions which come with a therapy bill, and even to a Padam Padam spectacular, McKnight really is the hardest-working dame in Pantoland. 

Capturing the form of a thanklessly hard-working single mother of indeterminable years, Marge McTwank runs this laundry hoose with the aid of her two daughters, the titular Aladdin – played with genuine awe and enthusiasm by the brilliant Betty Valencia – and their younger daughter Wiz-She-Was-She who is always armed with a gag or two. The trio are in tough times, with the people of the kingdom struggling for coin, and laundry not being the highest priority. But it all changes when Aladdin meets Dylan Wood’s hilarious and dashing Prince Jasper (and his salt-of-the-earth teddy bear), and is tempted into a mysterious cave full of treasures by a soft-spoken man with a panache for green sequins and luxurious hair.

Robert Jack’s Demon King rightfully challenges McKnight for their place in the spotlight, turning even the more groan-worth of puns into solid belters which hit hard and raise laughter from around the audience. With pomp and pretension which mask their ineptitude, the Demon King may seek the Jeanie of the lamp for themselves but often finds themselves the butt of the jokes. But don’t be fooled by their appearance; this baddie of the pantoland has a few twisted tricks up their sleeves, and a couple of musical numbers too…

It’s all thanks to Stephanie Fulton’s choreography, with Jennifer Dick’s direction for the young team, funnels the show’s momentum into straightforward pacing. Even the tender moments between Jeanie and Aladdin’s wee sister Wiz-She-Was-She which bring genuine tears to the room, even if audiences will deny it, convey a sense of energy and refrain from slowing the pacing. Helen McAlpine’s downright hilarious take on the younger McTwank sister serves as both folly and narrator for the show, filling in for a de-facto Buttons of Muddles (but improving the role), while Amy Conachan brings an energetic flair to the show as the Jeanie, who seems to have spent their time confined to the lamp collecting Scottish-themed pinnies, and stretches their spectacular vocals whenever they can.

And as equal stars as any of the top-billers, the Macroberts pantomime utilises the young performers better than most other pantos across the land, each with a more vital role to the story, and evidently in a richly comfortable and welcoming environment as they openly joke (and flub lines) with McKnight without a fear the show may be impacted. Dubbed either The Queenies or The Jeanies, the young team associated with Aladdin put in sterling work from their movement and choreography to their sinister plots as the Demon King’s ‘Red Eyes’.

Downright terrific fun, Aladdin is the funniest Panto on Scottish stages right now, and another reminder (as if we needed one) as to the moniker of McKnight’s talents as the nation’s Panto connoisseur. Warm-hearted with enough gags to burst a cracker, the entire team bring their all to the Macroberts this year to spin the tale of Aladdin into a refreshing take on the adventurous tale with a few glittering specs of musical talent and killer humour.

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