Sleeping Beauty

Have I got panto fatigue? Oh yes I have

Have I got panto fatigue? Oh yes I have. Having now taken in all three major Dublin shows, I can honesty say that I don't want to hear another tepid Terry Keane reference, another absurdly contrived placement of La Vida Loca or another poor pun about "ghosties and ghoulies" for, hmmm, let's say another year or so anyway.

For the last couple of years, the St Anthony's team of producer/star Alan Hughes and producer/writer Karl Broderick have really stuck it to the big boys (or girls - June Rodgers and Twink, to be specific) with rollicking entertainments that have more than matched the posher shows. This year, check their bums for laurel marks, because there's every sign they're resting.

That said, Sleeping Beauty is far from terrible. It scores highly for proper (over-) acting from the likes of Richard Gibson (hey, that's Herr Flick) and Dame Gerry Walsh, and it features this year's most suitably villainous villain in Liz Lloyd as Nastina, with fabulously black sidekicks Jealousy and Envy. And, hello, there are attractive romantic leads who can sing and dance (Amy Creighton and Mark McDonnell).

Credit, too, is due for keeping the "live" in live theatre by actually singing most of the songs onstage. I could do with far, far less of the bizarre pre-teen charms of pop-imitators Boyzonly, but the crowd ate them up.

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But the show boots along on enthusiasm from stage and stalls rather than on anything resembling wit and invention. And, frankly, for a panto that should pride itself on a tad more coherence than its competitors, the blink-and-you'll-miss-it denouement is an insult even to my four-year-old.

Or maybe Daddy's getting cranky. Can we go home now?

Runs to Jan 23rd (bookings 016706991/6726222)