Review: SNOW WHITE, Paisley Arts Centre

Now in its 36th annual year, PACE Theatre Company presents Snow White at Paisley Arts Centre as their annual pantomime. 

Snow White, beloved daughter of Sally Smyth (our panto dame- Chris Alexander) is turning eighteen and everyone in the village who loves her is ready to celebrate. However, they are ruled by an evil queen (Joanne McGuiness) who is obsessed with keeping them all poor and ensuring that she is the best looking in the land. When her magic mirror tells her that there’s another who is more beautiful, she orders to have Snow White killed.

Chiara Sparkes as Snow White truly is the fairest of them all. Her Snow White is clever, brave and funny. She’s a dab hand at the DIY, and it’s always a real joy to see a plucky princess instead of a distressed damsel. Bailey Newsome is Prince Barry, the queen’s son who is ordered to take Snow White into the woods and kill her. His clear reluctance to do this, plus the general nervousness of his character, are part of the charm. In this story, it's the Prince who needs to find courage, and Newsome is extremely likeable in the role. 

Snow White stumbles upon a group of miners in the woods and moves in with them while she's hiding out. There's a fun Scottish twist on the original characters as we meet characters such as Numpty and Riddie and of course everyones favourite- Farty. 

The youth cast is obviously a huge part of PACE Theatre Company and four teams of young performers cover the panto run. It’s not the biggest stage but there are a couple of good quips about the number of kids on stage and it makes for a lot of fun. 

Established panto duo Chris Alexander and Alan Orr bring the comedy and they work brilliantly both with Andy McGregor’s script and improvisation. There’s a particularly excellent puppetry scene that goes down a storm.

The PACE panto is one of the most thrilling for young audiences because it gives everyone the chance to be involved. It’s a much more intimate theatre, so your chances for catching sweeties are massively increased and there’s an inclusive dance number that allows anyone who wants to get onstage the opportunity.

With fantastic performances, original songs and a whole lot of heart, Snow White is yet another must-see panto from PACE Theatre Company.

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