Review: Panto! The Wizard of Oz at People’s Theatre

“…this one comes highly recommended…”

Panto! The Wizard of Oz by Tom Whalley, People’s Theatre

By Lauren Powell

I haven’t watched a panto since I was a small child. When I hit double figures I was too cool for such childish things. As an adult I remain steadfastly child-free so going to see a panto seems slightly like a weird thing to do. Then again, I’ve never let seeming weird stop me from doing anything before, so when I got the chance to go to the People’s Theatre this year I figured, “why not?”

For me, this show was a bag of revels. I found most of it delicious and delightful, but there were a few “orange flavour” moments I was rather averse to.

I was pleasantly surprised by the set. The People’s will never have the budget of those big fancy West End touring shows, but they always do such a good job of making a lot out of a little. I particularly loved the way they kept the landscape the same, but the dressing changed from scene to scene, giving members of the chorus more time on stage. 

My favourite character was, hands down, the scarecrow played by Jess Chapman. Their clowning stole the show. By far, the best bit of the show was when the scarecrow asked the boys and girls and if they would be their friend and a hoarde of absolute genius children shouted back, “No!” My cackle could have put the Wicked Witch of the West’s own to shame. Speaking of Witch (pun intended), Hattie Eason was also a high point. Fab presence and booming evil laugh.

Big shout-out to the younger members of the cast. What effervescence, what amazingly enacted choreography! It’s so nice to look at people and be able to wonder what you’ll be reviewing them in when they are a bit older. 

I’m not going to pull my punches with the writing: it was weak. Sometimes the characters spoke in rhyming couplets, sometimes they didn’t. It felt like a decision was made in draft one and given up on at some point. I gather it’s a panto thing for old jokes to abound, but it felt like the show was constructed around a list of dad jokes rather than the plot. I also wasn’t keen on some of the jokes, which could be a bit misogynistic and the jokes for the parents were just crass for the sake of it. Finally I really didn’t like that there was nothing contemporary for the kids in this show. It is absolutely child-friendly but it’s the same sort of jokes and references that were made forty-ish years ago when I were a lass. I don’t exactly have my finger on the pulse of the youth, but there were no references catering for this generation of children that I saw. I’m not asking for Skibidi Toilet to make an appearance, but something from the last decade might have made it feel like it was written for them.

The sound was also a big problem for me. When mics often weren’t on, everyone was projecting and it meant it was far too loud when the sound actually did kick in. I was tempted to step out during the first fifteen minutes of the second act because it was so overwhelming. If you or your munchkins have an issue with volume, bring ear defenders. The lighting, on the other hand, was great! It was the best lighting I’ve seen at The People’s by miles. It really added to the bright party vibe.

Overall then, there were bits about this panto I really enjoyed and others I was less than keen on. That said, I was talking about it to my plus one and she, a reluctant panto-going mother, said it was hands down the absolute best panto she had ever seen. So, I’m going to give this a solid four stars – the highs were certainly high, the lows were, alas, a little too low. But if you haven’t booked a panto yet, this one comes highly recommended by a woman who has sat through her fair share of them, even if slightly less highly recommended by a curmudgeon who hasn’t seen a panto as an adult before.

Panto! The Wizard of Oz plays at People’s Theatre until Sunday 21 December 2025. Tickets are available here.

Lauren Powell is a recovering academic from the North East of England. Currently residing in South Shields with her partner and two malevolent gerbils. Lauren is a short form writer who writes fiction as well as reviews. She has loved the theatre since childhood, and many years ago volunteered back stage with an amateur group, Stage Focus.  From one man readings to musical and beyond, Lauren can not get enough! You can find her on Twitter/X here.