07 Dec 2025
The team behind Evolution Pantomimes might actually shoot me for saying this, but it could be time for Bob Golding to hang up his frocks, musical maestro “Uncle Matt” Mellor to close his piano lid, and Damian Patton to try his hand at some serious drama.
Because it’s hard to see how they’re going to match the stratospheric heights of this year’s near-faultless version of Aladdin, which could possibly be the best Arena panto we’ve ever seen.
This is obviously said with love and respect, and from 16 years of experience in reviewing these productions, but if you consistently raise the bar then sooner or later you’re not going to be able to jump over the top – it really was that good.
From the singalong song choices to the dynamic dancing, the phenomenal cast’s performances to the breathtaking special effects, everything came together in perfect harmony, resulting in two hours of West End quality musical theatre.
So where do we begin? It was a bold choice to kick off the narrative with a focus on bad guy Abaneezer (“the geezer”), but I guess if you have EastEnders stalwart Steve McFadden as your star then you might as well give him plenty of stage-time, even if he was pretty unrecognisable behind a twirly moustache and mohawk haircut…
He’s soon joined by personal favourite Rosanna Harris, who brought a TOWIE style to her portrayal of Betty, aka The Spirit of the Ring, with her cheeky charm complemented by a powerful voice which caught you completely by surprise.
Events move to the Old Harpenden Road, and the first of an array of high-energy numbers – Dancing in the Streets – all of which serve to highlight the talents of the backing dancers, who delivered tight and energetic performances throughout the show.
Bob Golding’s scene-stealing entrance as joke shop owner Dame Dolly, his self-professed favourite pantomime role, proves the undoing of audience member Ben – “a bit of a show-off from Hemel” – who is dragged into proceedings at various points during the night, including actually joining the cast on stage for one particular comedy routine. Watch out dads, it could be you next time!
Producer and writer Paul Hendy was perhaps subconsciously self-referential when the script says Dolly’s shop provides gags for all the pantos across the country – and saves the best for the Alban Arena. If you’re expecting the usual cheesy puns and digs at Luton and Watford then you won’t be disappointed, but some of the other lines are pure comedy gold.
After spotting SADC parking lead Cllr Helen Campbell in the audience, you had to wonder what she made of the pointed references to the authority in the script, whether it was the fact that it takes three hours to get into the city and costs £30 to park, how death by a thousand cuts sounds just like St Albans council, or “I’ve got so much money I can afford to park in St Albans…”
Whether it’s giant comedy animals, flying carpet rides, water fights through the aisles, comic book fight scenes, Dame Dolly’s ridiculous outfits or the trademark Alban Arena ghost gag bench, it seems as though there’s so much more to this particular pantomime than we’ve seen in years. Every scene seems to be packed to bursting with sharp choreography (top work Emily Davis-Wells!), snappy lines and show-stopping songs, keeping up the pace and never dragging for a minute.
Arguably it’s the music which also packs a punch this year, featuring a wider range of styles and songs than any Arena panto has previously offered, including the likes of Teenage Dirtbag, I Fought The Law, Defying Gravity, KPop Demon Hunters’ Golden, I Predict A Riot and Common People (“She studied drama at Oaklands College.”).
Of particular note was the rewritten version of Bruce Springsteen classic Born to Run, completely transforming a tale of teenage motorbikers into a celebration of the wares of Dame Dolly’s joke shop.
There were even more songs making up the content of the absolutely hilarious barrow routine, which sees the comedy trio of Bob, PC World (Damian Patton) and Charlie (Dave Bibby) work through dozens of vocal extracts used in the place of dialogue. Just putting this together must have taken days on its own, but it’s a fresh and innovative take on the traditional Arena sketch.
Also worthy of highlighting is the medley performed by Aladdin (Iverson Yabut) and Princess Jasmine (Emily Tang), which bounced between so many numbers that it was hard to keep up, but included the likes of Breakfast at Tiffany’s, Paparazzi, Creep, Heroes, Love Story and I Will Always Love You, showcasing the range and talent of this exceptional duo.
It would have been great to see more of genie Mr G, aka Jamal Kane Crawford, and not just because his oiled and muscular physique was of particular interest to the mums in the front rows. He oozed charisma, had some phenomenal dance moves, and completely owned the role to the extent that you forget the Disney interpretations completely.
And that’s true for the entire effort really. This is very much Evolution’s Aladdin, and so it should be. The confidence and charm which is evident throughout tells of a producer and director team who know exactly how to give the audience the very best show possible, so a massive virtual applause for Paul Hendy, Emily Wood and Jo Parsons, just a few cogs in the unseen Evolution machinery which makes this panto a reality.
This is more than a five star pantomime, it’s possibly the finest production we’ve ever seen grace the stage of the Alban Arena. It remains to be seen whether the quality can be maintained for next year’s Beauty and the Beast, but why wait to find out? The FOMO is real – book your tickets today!
