‘Allo ‘Allo!
Cardiff Open Air Theatre Festival kicked off on June 23rd with Stephen Sondheims Into The Woods. The festival itself couldn’t be suited in a better location, in the heart of the city alongside the River Taff and in the beautiful grounds of Sophia Gardens.
After enjoying the festival last year we was excited to be invited along to the gala showing of Allo Allo. I find it’s always hard to make the crossover from television show to theatre stage even big productions like Mrs Browns Boys lose the appeal they have on the small screen when acted out on stage.
But.. We attended last years Blackadder and the Everyman cast pulled that one off superbly so I had little doubt we would be disappointed with Allo Allo, especially as director Simon H West was once again at the helm.
The set was authentic and took place in the cafe/bar run by the madcap duo René & Edith. René played by Paul Williams and Edith played by Trish Murphy give a hysterical performance and their fast wit kept us laughing throughout the night there is not one dull moment when they are on stage, but then there isn’t a dull moment throughout the whole show.
The cast is exceptional and the comic timing is genius, it’s slapstick, it’s silly, it’s amazing. They say comedy is the hardest genre to do, well these guys nailed it.
Everyman Theatre are enjoying a wave of successes, having recently performed alongside The Royal Shakespeare Company at The New Theatre it was impossible to distinguish who was from Everyman and who was with the RSC. To label them amateur seems unfair and after last nights performance they once again prove to me there is nothing amateur about their performance, it’s as good as it gets.
So if your looking for a great night out and a lot of laughs then book yourself a ticket to Allo Allo. The beautiful Sophia Gardens makes s great backdrop for the show and there’s a bar and food available too.
I will say this only once…. It’s a scream!
Allo Allo runs until July 16th then the festival shows Romeo & Juliet and finishes with Disneys Peter Pan.
