Pantomine Review: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Panto season is upon us (oh yes it is!), and what better way to kick it off than with UOB PantoSoc’s rendition of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The panto reworked the familiar tale with some brilliantly written student-orientated twists, to make for a comic, light-hearted evening perfectly fitting for a student audience.

Upon discovering that she was no longer the fairest in the land, the furious queen, played excellently with snarling sass and a commanding stage presence, sets a group of hunters to get Snow White. Snow White stumbles across the fun-loving seven dwarfs (who comically, and accurately, depict an average group of lazy students in a student house). Joined by punters from the local pub, they band together to help her out. The play’s action revolves around the well-loved pub, a fitting concept for student life.

Snow White, played with comic apathy, was far from the sweet, innocent and quite frankly boring original Disney version. Instead, she was glum and standoffish and certainly didn’t need saving by any old prince. The prince in question was confidently played, his wannabe-cool persona and failing charm was hilarious to watch and he responded well to raucous heckling from the audience.

Snow White, played with comic apathy, was far from the sweet, innocent and quite frankly boring original Disney version

My favourite character was the hilariously raunchy pub landlady Dame with their impeccable solo number. The Queen’s gruesomely performed creature-like sidekick too was a real stand out villainous performer. Furthermore, the magic mirror’s geezer-esq character had brilliant comic timing and bravado, strutting on and off stage in her fur coat and comically sparked off the petulant Queen. The fairy godmother’s need for a pint, subsequently spilling all of her woes in the pub, particularly made me laugh and the bizarre love-interest between two of the students made for an interesting twist.

But it feels like a disservice to the production to pick out certain characters, as the best part of the play was how harmoniously all of the cast and crew worked together.

It feels like a disservice to the production to pick out certain characters

It was so evident to see that every single actor and musician was thoroughly enjoying being involved and that made the play so heart-warming to watch. It has to be noted that there wasn’t the put-together slickness or timeliness you would get from a professional touring panto, but this made it so much more refreshingly entertaining.

Normal pantomimes, after all, get a bit tiresome in their polished pursuit of a cringeworthy happily ever after. Instead, the set design, the jolly musical numbers played by the band, the frequent fun choral numbers and excellent choreography, and the plenty of in-jokes made the panto feel lively and uplifting.

I commend the hard work of all the people behind the scenes too. It was evident that a lot of passion and dedication fuelled the production. I left that night feeling inspired to take part in the next panto, in what was evidently a lovely, inclusive student-run group – what better outcome than that?