Rapunzel
Helix, Dublin
★★★★☆
In Rapunzel, TheatreWorx’s latest seasonal offering, three villains are determined to spoil our happy ending. There’s the evil witch Gothel (Rua Barron), who kidnapped the eponymous princess when she was a baby, the international man of mystery Leopold (Michael Kiersey), who has his eyes on the princess’s crown, and the Ticket Master (Kiersey, in doubling mode), who is determined to thwart any progress the goodies make in this original take on the classic fairy-tale, by kicking them out of the queue.
The triple threat posed in Claire Tighe and Karl Harpur’s script emphasises the ensemble sensibility that is the strength of TheatreWorx’s idiosyncratic approach to the pantomime style. While Rapunzel (Caoimhe Garvey) lends her name as its title, there are really no leading roles here. The pantomime’s returning characters, such as dame-of-the-day Lola (Chris Coroon), nice-but-dim Laurel (Aidan Mannion) and the effervescent Buddy (Brian Dalton), have equal stakes in the familiar storyline, which centres on the quest to solve the mystery of Rapunzel’s disappearance.
With the additional help of a fairy (Rachel Gaughan) and an opportunistic hero (Daniel Miles), the triumph of good over evil is actually pretty straightforward. Then a standout Switcheroo scene, achieved with excellent technical timing, provides a last-minute complication.
The ensemble approach is evident in the musical numbers, too, which are nimbly managed by musical director David Hayes. There are a few standouts (Lola performing Chappell Roan’s Hot to Go, for example), but the strongest musical scenes are shared out among the talented cast before the interval and at the finale, when they invite the audience to join in with a rousing rendition of The Spark.
Indeed, Kabin Crew’s 2024 anthem shares the same sense of warm and wholesome generosity as TheatreWorx’s production, which is defined by strong storytelling and effortless inclusivity. There are no special effects, no grand coup-du-theatre, but there are oodles of old-fashioned charm.
Rapunzel is at the Helix, Dublin, until Sunday, January 12th
