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On Saturday night I took the kids out to a pantomime. As the school holidays are now upon us we’re trying to squeeze in as many theatre shows as possible as part of our Easter bucket list.  We’re lucky that there’s plenty of shows in the North West this Easter to keep the kids entertained. Last night we headed down to St. Helens’ Theatre Royal to watch The Wizard of Oz.

Theatre Royal St. Helens

I’m married to a St. Helens boy and our family all have season tickets at the rugby league club so we know the town pretty well. However we’ve never actually made it to Theatre Royal before. I found it easy to find (and I have NO sense of direction!) and there was a council carpark just a couple of streets away. It’s right next to the bus station so equally easy to get to by public transport.

The theatre itself is lovely and has a bar area upstairs selling drinks and refreshments. There’s also treats (sweets, crisps etc) for sale downstairs by the ticket office. We were sat in the stalls and had a fantastic view.

Wizard Of Oz St. Helens Review

The kids have watched and loved the Wizard of Oz film and so were really excited to see the show. They were not disappointed!

The show was jam packed full of jokes, silliness and great songs and all three kids sat entranced! It’s difficult to find something that will appeal to both my youngest (4 years old) and my eldest (10 years old) but the Wizard of Oz did just that.

There were plenty of local Merseyside references and jokes, and even had music from The Beatles at one point! It was full of typical panto humour – slapstick and silliness for the little ones and more adult gags for the grown ups that sailed over the young ones’ heads. There was plenty of topical humour too; not even a trip to the theatre can get you away from Brexit!

Mother/daughter duo Lucy Kane and Linda Lusardi were brilliant as Glinda and the (rather glamorous!) Wicked Witch of the West. Mia Molloy was great as Dorothy and showed off some fantastic vocals. The Tin Man was equally as good and his mannerisms and movements were perfect for our woodman searching for a heart.

Photo credit : David Munn Photography

The Scarecrow completely stole the show and had all the kids in hysterics. His delightfully silly manner and slapstick style humour had the theatre erupting in laughter. He was all my kids could talk about on the drive home.

Whilst the humour of The Scarecrow and the vocal talents of Dorothy may have stole the show for some, it was The Lion who was my favourite. The Cowardly Lion has always stolen my heart when watching the film.

“Stick ’em up!”

I thought Steve Arnott was cast perfectly and everything from the voice, the look and the mannerisms were done to perfection.

The music is so important in shows like this and this one didn’t let us down. We were treated to the classic Wizard Of Oz tunes such as Somewhere Over The Rainbow, and We’re Off To See The Wizard. The show was also full of popular songs such as Bat Out Of Hell, Feel It and even Baby Shark!

Photo credit : David Munn Photography

The show was a massive hit with all of us. Even the slight first night mishaps were dealt with great humour and had the audience laughing along. It was hugely entertaining and so much fun.

A truly Wicked night out!

The show is at St. Helens’ Theatre Royal until 22nd April 2019.  Click here to book.

I was offered complimentary tickets for the purposes of this review. As always opinions are my own.