Christmas entertainment

It was wonderful and what they've packed into two and half hours is amazing. The balance between professional and amateur is so good. There is Kenny Cantor as Idle Jack heading the cast, and he is truly one of the best pantomime comedians I have seen in many a year. His handling of children has to be seen. He has everyone eating out of his hand in the first few minutes. No wonder he has been in 51 pantomimes.

Sarah the Cook is portrayed by Cedric Jemmett and she's another professional of many years standing and is a great dame. He has the knack of being funny and not rude. The baddie Queen Rat is played by Caron Cantor, and together with her horde of little rats she is admirable. She is particularly prominent in a song they do together after the shipwreck, the cheers and screams from the audience was deafening. It must be said that Shani Cantor as Fairy Grooveychick is definitely a chip off the old blocks. She sings, she dances, and boy is she good as Fairy Grooveychick.

Christine Cullen and Tiffanie Craven take the title roles of Dick Whittington and his Cat and they pair up very well. Together with Maia Gibbs as Alice Fitzwarren they make a fine trio and keep to the story.

Ricky Leighton, Danny Simmons & Ben Cracknell as Alderman Fitzwarren and Captain and his mate, provide the other part of the story and very good they are too. The Captain is the one who hates kids, and is met with the audience shouting at him all the time - all great fun. David Willis and Teresa Chapman complete the principal cast as Sultan & Sultana of Morocco and they're very believable and certainly bring the story to its high point. The whole company sing the Christmas X factor hit "A Moment Like This".

Idle Jack has the children up on the stage with him at the end. The afternoon show that I attended was absolutely hilarious and each child got a loads of presents. One little girl was brilliant, she just would not stop talking and Cantor just was great with her, and all the others as well. We laughed until we could laugh no more.

This is a must-see Pantomime. The boys and girls who are chorus are Cantors Theatre School students and they are absolutely great in their different roles of fairies, rats, villagers, cats in a cat ballet, concubines in the harem and they did everything with great enthusiasm.

This is a bright, happy show and has all the right ingredients for being a brilliant pantomime, especially when you see the show in this tiny little theatre. The stage does not seem big enough to have 30 odd in the cast, but they do it, and it is wonderful for families and especially the younger ones.

Dick Whittington runs at Beccles Public Hall Fri 5th Jan-Mon 15th Jan. Tickets £5.50-£6.50 Box office 07891 646310. This event is being supported by BBC Radio Suffolk