North West Theatre

Sleeping Beauty

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Eric Potts
20 Nov 10 to 08 Jan 11
Oldham Coliseum Theatre

The Coliseum's usual traditional Christmas panto, once again starring Fine Time Fontayne as the dame.

Interview: Sue Devaney

Ashton-under-Lyne-born Sue Devaney, a familiar face from such TV hits as Coronation Street, dinnerladies and Casualty, is no stranger to the Coliseum herself, having previously played there in Cinderella, Good Golly Miss Molly, and Wake Up Little Suzie.
City Life

...clean gags, breezy musical numbers, and a wonderfully OTT dame. It makes for a thoroughly entertaining family night out... [Sue] Devaney delivers a virtuoso comic turn... Heledd Baskerville is likeably ditsy as the Fairy... Richard J Fletcher manages the trick of being both gormless and kind hearted... Fine Time Fontayne returns for the third year running, and is a delightfully daft dame... Director Kevin Shaw directs with plenty of zip and inventive business...
What's On Stage (Rating: 4/5)
...this script certainly showcases the talents of Oldham’s regular dame, the wonderful Fine Time Fontayne... Richard J Fletcher is his usual cherubically chunky self... Amy Rhiannon Worth doubles splendidly... Sue Devaney, sounding uncannily like a demented Anne Robinson, is histrionically loathsome as Carabosse...
The Stage
...some of the funniest parts of the show for adults are when [Fine Time] Fontayne, [Patrick] Bridgman and [Richard J] Fletcher compete to try to throw one another or point out each others' mistakes... [Sue] Devaney appears to really enjoy the back-and-forth with the audience and is superb in the part... In the principal boy... part, Amy Rhiannon Worth brings rather more substance and comedy to the role than it often has... Celia Perkins has designed a very nice and bright set and costumes that give the appearance of a modern children's picture book... another varied and entertaining show for all the family.
British Theatre Guide
...a couple of jokes about the royal wedding are the only thing that make this production different from Aladdin, two years ago... Fine Time Fontayne... as Nurse Nora... has a natural ability to create an over the top yet loveable character... Richard J Fletcher as Nurse Nora’s son, Larry, is effervescent enough to engage the attention of the children... Sue Devaney’s evil fairy Carabosse... Wonderfully extreme in both her physical and vocal delivery... Heledd Baskerville’s Fairy Rainbow is uninspiring and the principal boy and girl (Amy Rhiannon Worth and Nicole Evans) both ineffectual... Celia Perkins’ set and costume designs were mostly excellent...
The Public Reviews (Rating: 3/5)