Presented by Pig’s Ear Productions

Review by Hunter King

Willow Studio at Greenside @ Riddles Court

It isn’t time for a pantomime yet is it? “Oh yes it is!” It may only be August, but Pig’s Ear Productions have continued their annual tradition of bringing a pantomime to the Fringe, with this year’s edition being Gagula: The Panto with Teeth! The show itself tries to be a traditional pantomime while adapting Bram Stoker’s classic, Dracula.

The show is littered with classic panto characters, all of whom develop their archetype through the vampirism that is spread by the dame, Countess Gagula (Finn Bender). Bender is joined in the cult of vampirism by Charlie Macbeth as the muscle, Igor and Bella Yow as the seductress, Lucy. Among the goodies are Jack Dams as Jonathan Harker, Gabrielle Mann as Mina Murray, Kady Lyon as the Narrator, and perhaps the unspoken star of the show Buster van der Geest as Van Helsing. 

The scrappy cast of eight fully takes on each of their roles with conviction and gusto. The story itself is a fast paced romp, trying hard to encapsulate as much of Stoker’s novel as it can in its one hour run time. Overall, the performances are well thought out and clearly well rehearsed, with each line delivered at a pace that makes it clear they’ve performed this show a few times already. 

The most difficult thing to get behind with Gagula was that the writing didn’t feel particularly panto-esque. While the audience was encouraged to interact in different moments and participate as one would at a standard winter panto, the show wasn’t abundantly clear on who we were meant to be rooting for. As an example, Gagula herself is meant to be the primary villain, but is also the dame. These little mix ups made for a timid crowd, and made the show feel much more like a standard comedy than a pantomime. While this may be something to improve on in the future, Pig’s Ear Productions are still able to find their rhythm and put on a fun Fringe production that will have you itching for the holiday season.  

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