Theatre
From the jungle to Maidstone Beauty and the Beast, Hazlitt Theatre T
HE Hazlit’s annual panto is always a riot of colour, laughter, bawdy seaside jokes and family fun.
Te big star this year is the former X-Factor finalist and reality star Jake Quickenden in Beauty and the Beast (A Tale as Old as Time). Now aged 30, the former Scunthorpe United youth player plays the lead, Danon, with Martha- Frances Henry (Beauty), David Zachary (D’jon), Ian Good (Mademoiselle Marmalade) and Sarah Hopper (Enchantress). Maidstone lad Will Hodges, 22, plays Danon’s sidekick DC, having graduated from the Hazlit Youth Teatre set-up. He tells us: “I got a call from the director Martin Cleverley saying I’d got the part and I jumped at the chance.”
Will joined the Hazlit Youth Teatre at the age of 12, spending some six years there before moving on to the East 15 Acting School, where
he has just graduated aſter three years. Jake Quickenden got through to the X Factor live shows five years ago at the second atempt, but was eliminated relatively early on.
Despite his projection onto the biggest reality show of them all, he carried on playing semi- professional football (his early career was cut short by a broken leg).
But perhaps his biggest exposure was in the 11th series of I’m A Celebrity (Get Me Out of Here), when he finished runner-up to the former motorcyclist and on-screen chum, Carl Fogarty.
He then achieved even more recognition in
Dancing on Ice. The Hazlitt Theatre, Earl Street, Maidstone ME14 1PP, November 30 until December 31, Call the box office on 01622 758611 or go to
www.hazlitttheatre.com for performance time and prices.
Peter Pan, Assembly Hall Theatre
Panto fans in Tunbridge Wells will be enjoying some swashbuckling fun at the Assembly Hall Teatre this Christmas when Peter Pan comes to town.
Starring former EastEnders and Holby
City star Paul Bradley (as Captain Hook), he will be supported by Lloyd Warbey as Peter, Holly Aterton as Tinker Bell, Sarah Jane Buckley as Mrs Darling, and, of course, Tunbridge Wells favourite returning Dame, Quinn Patrick as Mrs Smee.
Tunbridge Wells is always seen as a great place to take in a show, with its burgeoning night-time economy and countless places to eat near the theatre.
A spokesman says: “We always look forward to the panto season. Tunbridge Wells and the surrounding area is a great catchment for the panto lover, young or old. “And we have a fantastic theatre, too, with plenty of capacity and it certainly can whip
up a great atmosphere.” The Assembly Hall Theatre, Crescent Road, Tunbridge Wells TN1 2LU. Tickets vary in price. Peak tickets for adults are £22.25 and children £18.75, standard £20.25 and £17.25 and saver at £17.75 and £15.75. There are group packages available. Call 01892 530613 or go to
assemblyhalltheatre.co.uk
34 Mid Kent Living Once Upon a Snowflake,
Folkestone Quarterhouse Te Creative Foundation decided to change its name last year, according to its chief executive Alastair Upton, for a refresh, to fit more snugly into the seaside town it calls home and to reflect the recent change of the local authority’s name. Now called Creative Folkestone, Mr Upton has presided over a calm and orderly rethink of the organisation in his decade plus in charge.
Te organisation’s theatre - with a capacity of litle more than 200 – is a magnet for acts, especially stand-up comics looking to trial material ahead of wider tours in larger venues.
Tis year, its Christmas offering is Paper Balloon: Once Upon a Snowflake which according to the blurb “is a magical world
of shadow puppetry, storytelling and enchanting songs for all the family”. Te Paper Balloon Teatre Company, started by Australian Katie Reeve, and aims to “tell big stories for small people”. Te puppeteers will be performing twice a day over a 12-day period until Christmas Eve and, by all accounts, is worth it, not least because of the intimacy of the venue. As Mr Upton concludes: “It’s different, for sure, but that’s what this organisation is all about. But is it family friendly show that
kids will love? Definitely.” The Quarterhouse, Tontine Street, Folkestone CT20 1BN. Tickets vary in price from £6 for children to £20 for a family. Call 01303 760750 or click onto
www.creativefolkestone.org.uk
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