Home » Reviews » Off West End » Scoop, Imagine Watford 2013

Scoop, Imagine Watford 2013

Presented by Pins and Needles
Part of Imagine Watford 2013
Lyric Hammersmith, Greenwich + Docklands International Festival, Watford Palace Theatre and Latitude productions

★★★★

Pros: Containing lots of humour for young and old this is an enjoyable half hour of street entertainment. Panto-esque fun, music and clever use of costumes and props bring the story to life and keep it upbeat and pacey.

Cons: Just one– outdoor performance has taken its toll on the costumes and props which needed a good clean!

Our Verdict: This good, old fashioned, funny skit involving disco, ice cream and romance, really hits the mark for family street entertainment! Full of slapstick humour and audience engagement for the kids and double entendre for the grown ups there is plenty to keep the whole audience laughing.

Courtesy of Imagine Watford 2013

What a hoot! My whole family enjoyed the antics of Ackerley Addaneye as he took us through the highs and lows of his life as the driver of an ice cream van come salon come disco emporium – a journey that takes him from Brumpton Bromney to Rio and back!

This is a cheeky panto style tale of hugely humorous characters, filled with slapstick gags and funny relatable scenarios – my kids laughed afterwards about Ackerley puncturing all the space hoppers to win the race at the school fete! The writing in this short piece is really good as there is genuinely something for everyone and the comic timing of the cast was excellent. I love the clever costume changes and the inspired use of simple props (including puppets of sorts). If you are going to do street theatre this is how – lots of visual humour for the younger audience and tongue in cheek gags for the grown ups. It could easily transfer to a stage and I would certainly buy a ticket for an extended version, it is really very good.

Imagine Watford is such a fantastic event – free street entertainment right in the pedestrian precinct of Watford High Street surrounded by shops, pubs and restaurants. In the short time I was there I saw music, acrobatics, mime, comedy drama, interactive theatre and dance – there is definitely something for the whole family and with several different performances starting every half hour or so you are spoilt for choices. I am definitely going to keep an eye out for this event in the future, it’s such a great day out for the whole family and its completely free!

Please feel free to leave your thoughts and opinions in the comments section below!

Scoop was part of the Imagine Watford open air festival–various productions 20 – 30 June 2013 For further information go to http://www.imaginewatford.co.uk or contact 01923 235455.

About Everything Theatre

Everything Theatre is proud to support fringe theatre, not only in London but beyond. From reviews to interviews, articles and even a radio show, our work is at the heart of the industry, and we are official assessors for the Off West End OffComm awards. Founded in 2011 as a pokey blog run by two theatre enthusiasts, today we are staffed by diverse contributors - people who not only work in theatre, but also in law, medicine, marketing and even psychiatry! We are all united by our love for theatre.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*