When it comes to entertainment, it’s not always easy to find something that my mum and my sister can both enjoy. As a family we all have extremely different ideas about what a good night out means, but a night out at the Alhambra to see this year’s pantomime, The Wizard of Oz, had both my mum and my 21-year-old sister excited.
None of us had been to a pantomime since pre-covid, and my sister hadn’t been to one since she was in school, so we were all hoping for a great experience in Dunfermline, and we definitely got it.
From start to finish my mum was greatly impressed by the dancers. At almost every scene change the group of dancers were there, with a new routine and some dazzling new outfits. They danced as farmers, munchkins, snowflakes, and members of the emerald city. My sister in particular thought their snowflake costumes were dazzling. Their ability to change so quickly between some of their routines was also impressive, as sometimes it felt like they had just finished one routine before they back with another perfectly choreographed performance.
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The Wizard of Oz is a pantomime that involves the entire audience from the very beginning. Ian ‘Sheepie’ Smith was the beloved scarecrow (my sister's favourite character), and he had everyone up dancing from his first appearance on the stage. His dance routine where he encouraged children and adults to get up out their seats for a little dance and wave had most of the theatre taking part in it by the end of the night. Although, I did notice the teenage boy in front of me try to drag his mother back into her seat the first time she did it!
The show didn’t just involve the audience in the traditional panto way with the usual shouts of “he’s behind you!” and so on, the show gave its audience a physical experience too. At the beginning of the show, Dorothy’s house was whizzed to Oz in a hurricane, and as everyone was watching the screen and the effects there, we began to realise that we were actually getting wet. My sister pointed out the farmers up on the theatre’s next floor pointing their water pistols at us to mimic rain!
That was an unexpected event, but one which the children absolutely adored as they watched the confusion on the faces of their parents and grandparents.
There was also a blend of traditional jokes and more modern ones throughout, and a few jokes that the adults in the crowd definitely appreciated.
The entire cast was excellent and their costumes were praised by both my sister and my mum for how good they looked, especially the lion’s costume.
Toto, played by a real dog, was adorable, and his appearances at the start and the end of the pantomime resulted in a lot of “aws” from the crowd as Toto looked out at the audience as he was held in Dorothy’s arms.
A great night was had by all, and there’s still time for you to see the show too!
The Wizard of Oz is running until December 28, tickets can purchased from the Alhambra’s website.
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