Lythgoe Family Panto

Lythgoe Family Panto officially an annual Music City event as ‘Aladdin and His Winter Wish’ plays TPAC’s Polk Theatre through December 22

December 21, 2019 by Jonathan

Kira Kosarin and Damon J. Gillespie starring in Aladdin and His Winter Wish/

Just as they did by presenting their take on Peter Pan during the holiday season last year, The Lythgoe Family has once again teamed up with TPAC to present yet another familiar tale with a decidedly modern twist as Aladdin and His Winter Wish continues its two-week run at Polk Theatre thru Sunday, December 22.

While based on the centuries old Middle Eastern folk tale, with a couple of lighthearted winks to a certain Arabian tale from the House of Mouse, Lythgoe Family’s Aladdin and His Winter Wish steps right into the 21st Century by combining elements from the original story, and classic British Pantomime with pop tunes and enough Nashville-centric one-liners, jokes and jabs to keep the audience in stitches whether they be 8 or 80.

For the uninitiated, as I did when I reviewed Peter Pan last year, allow me to explain a little about traditional British Pantomime. It’s a centuries old theatrical art-form known as Panto for short. Granted, when most Americans hear the word pantomime, thoughts of mimes with clown-white faces mimicking attempts of escaping non-existent boxes come to mind. While that is indeed a type of pantomime, this pantomime is much different.

With roots tracking back nearly as far as recorded time itself, pan-to—in the more modern sense—presents a familiar story, usually a favorite children’s fairy tale, but with comedy, music, encouraged audience interaction and just enough double-entendre to keep parents entertained as well.

Not only are there local mentions of things like Pedal Taverns and Nashville and surrounding cities (sorry Memphis, but you kinda deserve being the brunt of a few jabs), the show is chocked full of modern pop tunes that drive the story along.

Opening the show with a high energy belly dance-vibe take on The Pussycat Dolls’ 2009 mega-hit Jai Ho!, the ensemble gives a hint of the fun to come. As the story of Aladdin and his brother Wishee Washee (what can I say, their Mom, The Widow Twankey owns a laundry service) unfolds (pun fully intended), we learn that the two street rats dream of bettering life for themselves and their mother. This leads to the brothers joining forces for their take on the early 80s hit, Matthew Wilder’s Break My Stride. When Aladdin meets the Princess, there’s a little classic country flavor as he wistfully croons You Don’t Know Me, a song made popular in the 1950s by country legend, Eddy Arnold.

Bruce Vilanch as The Widow Twankey, flanked by sons, Aladdin (Gillespie) and Wishee Washee (Jonathan Meza)

The Widow Twankey then kicks things up a notch alongside the ladies of the chorus for a rollicking cover of Old Time Rock and Roll.

As the story continues and we learn that Aladdin believes his way into the Princess heart is through some miracle of riches, the audience is treated to his version of the Bruno Mars hit, Billionaire. Keeping it in an R&B vein, the Genie closes out Act 1 on a high note with a simply perfect rendition of Earth, Wind and Fire’s Fantasy.

Act 2 opens with another Bruno Mars tune, Treasure, performed by the company. Not forgetting one of Aladdin’s most treasured moments…Spoiler Alert….the magic carpet scene is, well, magical indeed. Perfectly framed by the sappy but sweet On the Wings of Love and the optimistic Walking on Sunshine. By show’s end, there’s the inevitable wedding followed by a wonderful winter surprise as the cast sings a faithful Let it Snow…another Spoiler Alert…you better believe it does…IN the theatre! Always a crowd pleaser!

And that’s just the music. The entire show is brimming with hilarious one-liners, clever jokes, a few bad-but still laugh inducing-puns and more than a handful of inside jokes referencing the actors and their previous claims to fame.

Audiences may not be readily familiar with The Lythgoe Family name, but chances are they’re very familiar with some of the projects they’ve spearheaded for television. Case in point, Nigel Lythgoe, the family’s patriarch, alongside son, Simon Lythgoe, have at one time both produced everything from So You Think You Can Dance to American Idol, while son Kris Lythgoe also worked with the family on So You Think You Can Dance and other projects.

This brings us back to Lythgoe Family Panto, which Kris and wife Becky Lythgoe began in 2010 with their take on Cinderella.

As was the case during last year’s Nashville presentation of Peter Pan, the company of Aladdin and His Winter Wish is also peppered with well-known talent of all ages and a healthy selection of Music City performers both on stage and behind the scenes.

In the title role is Tennessee native, Damon J. Gillespie. While he’s got roots in Tennessee, and seems to only be beginning his career, he, too has an impressive resume, having appeared on Broadway in Newsies and Aladdin, as well as television shows like Rise, Empire and Inside Amy Schumer. As Aladdin, Gillespie is perfectly mischievous and quite the charmer.

While Disney fans might be expecting Aladdin’s love interest to be named Jasmine, for this iteration, his intended is simply referred to as The Princess, as played by Kira Kosarin, who garnered popularity as well as three Kid’s Choice Award nominations for Favorite TV Actress for her starring role as Phoebe on Nickelodeon’s The Thudermans during the show’s four season run. Kosarin’s Princess is naturally beautiful with an enchanting voice to match. Who can blame Aladdin for doing whatever it takes to win her heart?

Richard Karn and Kira Kosarin as The Sultan and The Princess

Starring as The Princess’ father is Richard Karn as The Sultan. Karn, of course starred alongside Tim Allen in the hugely popular ABC sitcom, Home Improvement as Al Borland, Tim’s best friend and co-host. Karn’s comedic timing is perfectly suited for this type of interactive theatre where they encourage the audience to cheer to good guys and jeer the bad. Heck, on opening night, there was a minor snafu with a line or two and at one point the door of the set didn’t work as expected, but Karn and company rolled with the punches, even occasionally cracking up themselves. A truly endearing occurrence reminding older audiences of such classic comedy moments as The Carol Burnett Show when she and her co-stars couldn’t help but laugh at themselves.

Unlike that famous animated tale, this Aladdin isn’t an orphan. To that end, Jonathan Meza co-stars as Aladdin’s appropriately named brother, Wishee Washee. While Meza may be new to Nashville theatre, he’s no stranger to Lythgoe Family Panto as this marks his eighth show with the company. Audience members in the pre-teen to teenage range might also be familiar with Meza as Josh from the popular Nick Jr. bilingual musical series Jumpitz. Meza’s Wishee Washee not only plays second banana (and leap frog partner) to brother Aladdin, he also serves as narrator, therefore constantly breaking the fourth wall to get audience responses and reactions to what’s going on within the story. Another aspect of Panto that makes it fun for the whole family.

Rounding out Aladdin’s family is comedy icon and LGBT legend, Bruce Vilanch as Aladdin and Wishee Washee’s mother, the Widow Twankey. As a comedy writer, Vilance has provided the scripted banter for the Oscars and Emmy Awards for years. Early in his career, he wrote for and worked with everyone from Bette Midler and Donny and Marie Osmond and even penned two of my all-time favorite holiday specials, The Paul Lynde Halloween Special and the unforgettable (as much as George Lucas would like to try) Star Wars Holiday Special! Fans of a certain age will no doubt remember him as a frequent panelist (and writer) for Hollywood Squares in the late 90s and early 2000s. Of course this isn’t the first time Vilanch has appeared onstage stage in dresses and women’s wigs. In 2002, he took over the coveted role of Edna Turnblad during Broadway’s original run of Hairspray, then the following year, join the National Tour in the same role. As the Widow Twankey, Vilanch steals every scene he’s in, especially when she takes a shine to the evil sorcerer.

Speaking of…Josh Adamson stars as Abanazer, the show’s villain…think Jafar. Adamson, a native Aussie, has previously been seen in number of regional theatrical productions, including several Lythgoe Family Pantos, both here and in Australia, including Cinderella, Snow White and previous productions of Aladdin. Perfectly evil, but not so much as to truly scare younger audience members, Adamson is the consummate bad guy, maniacal laugh and all.

Rounding out the main cast are Mykal Kilgore as Genie and Alexis Gilbert as Alexa, the Slave of the Ring.

Mykal Kilgore and Damon J. Gillespie as The Genie and Aladdin

As for Kilgore he’s yet another performer familiar to many theatre-goers having appeared on Broadway in Hair, the first national tour of Book of Mormon. He was also seen in both recent televised musical productions of Jesus Christ Superstar and The Wiz. With more than a few nods to Will Smith’s recent turn as Genie for the big screen, Kilgore holds his own and makes the role truly his with a voice as smooth as Stevie Wonder and some fabulous moves.

Gilbert once again joins the Lythgoes, having previously appeared on stage in Aladdin as the Slave of the Ring, as well as previously appearing on Season 14 of So You Think You Can Dance. As a professional dancer, she’s worked with everyone from You Tube star Matthew Santoro, as well as pop superstar Pharrel Williams and electronic music superstars Daft Punk. And, Yes, you better believe the take full advance of the name Alexa with a number of jokes at that other Alexa we’re all so fond of talking to on our personal devices. While she floats in and out of the story, at the common of whomever is wearing the ring, Gilbert steals every scene she’s part of, thanks to her remarkable dance moves.

Which leads me to the ensemble. With the Lythgoe Family’s ties to dance, the remainder of the company is made up largely of phenomenal dance talent including Daniel Thomas, Albanus Thierry, Anna Melendres, Rachel Melendres, and Nashville’s own Chelsea Hough.

Speaking of Nashville, directing Aladdin and His Winter Wish is Ernie Nolan, known to Music City audiences for his work as Executive Artistic Director at our beloved Nashville Children’s Theatre. The show’s choreographer, Chase Benz is also another Nashville native. Now residing in Los Angeles, Benz’s impressive resume drops names like Brittney Spears, JLo, Rihanna, Back Street Boys and many more.

TPAC’s own Christi Dortch co-produced the show, alongside primary producers Becky and Kris Lythgoe, Kris also wrote the show.

Aladdin and His Winter Wish continues its holiday run in Nashville at TPAC‘s Polk Theatre with six performances remaining. On Friday, December 20, there’s a 7p.m. evening performance, on Saturday, December 21, there’s an 11a.m. morning performance as well as a 3p.m. matinee and a 7p.m. evening show and on Sunday, December 22, 12noon matinee and a 5p.m. final early evening performance. Tickets range in price from $45-$55. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets.

In case you don’t make it to Aladdin, I have it on good authority that the Lythgoe Family plans to continue to bring these entertaining American Pantos to Nashville with yet another new-to-Music City production next year!

Immediately following a very brief holiday break, TPAC’s Broadway series returns with the highly anticipated Nashville premier of the first-ever touring company of Hamilton onstage at TPAC’s Jackson Hall from December 31 thru January 19. CLICK HERE for tickets or more information. CLICK HERE to learn about TPAC’s recently announce $10 ticket lottery for every single Music City Performance. You can also discover all the latest from TPAC by checking them out online or on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

As always, if you are interested in coverage for your latest entertaining endeavor, simply click the contact page and drop me a note. You can also follow JHP Entertainment on Instagram and Facebook.

Theatre Review: ‘Peter Pan and Tinker Bell: A Pirate’s Christmas’ sprinkles a little fairy dust on the holiday season; continuing at TPAC’s Polk Theatre thru December 23

December 21, 2018 by Jonathan

Tegan Marie as Wendy, Diana DeGarmo as Tinker Bell, and Garrett Clayton as Peter Pan in “Peter Pan and Tinker Bell – A Pirate’s Christmas” at the Tennessee Performing Arts Center. (all photos by Derrick Minyard)

While the basic story might be familiar, Peter Pan and Tinker Bell: A Pirate’s Christmas, presented by Lythgoe Family Panto and currently playing Nashville at TPAC’s Polk Theatre, offers a whole new take on the classic. Interestingly, that new take is largely due a centuries old theatrical artform known as pantomime, or panto for short. When most Americans hear the word pantomime, thoughts of mimes with clown-white faces mimicking attempts of escaping non-existent boxes come to mind. While that is indeed a type of pantomime, this pantomime is much different.

With roots tracking back nearly as far as recorded time itself, panto—in the more modern sense—presents a familiar story, usually a favorite children’s fairy tale, but with comedy, music, encouraged audience interaction and just enough double-entendre to keep parents entertained as well.

Lythgoe Family Panto’s Kris Lythgoe has written a holiday version of the legendary tales of Peter Pan, Tinker Bell, Captain Hook and the Darling children, brothers Michael & John and sister, Wendy and set it all to tunes ranging from recent hits like Bruno Mars’ Uptown Funk and Rachel Platten’s Fight Song to modern classics like Blue Swede’s Hooked on a Feeling and The Village People’s In The Navy.

What’s more, said chart-toppers are performed by a brilliant mix of talented performers that also run the gamut on the entertainment scale. Case in point, Captain Hook is played to the deliciously sinister tongue-in-cheek max by none other than John O’Hurley. From his memorable 90s gig as J. Peterman, Elaine’s boss at the outdoorsy clothing catalogue company on Seinfeld, and his turn as lawyer Billy Flynn on Broadway and in a more recent national tour of Chicago to his annual TV host duties on Thanksgiving for Purina’s National Dog Show since 2002, O’Hurley has done it all. Heck, he even competed on Dancing With the Stars. As Captain Hook, he’s equal parts villain and ham—the perfect combination for a family-friendly show that manages to keep the adults entertained as well. O’Hurley’s musical moments—both the aforementioned Hooked on a Feeling and In The Navy are presented with his faithful sidekick, Smee and a rag-tag trio of pirates doing their best impersonations of Elvis Presley, John Lennon and Michael Jackson by his side as Captain Hook and the boys earn every single cheer and jeer from the audience. (don’t forget, in panto, audible reaction from the audience isn’t just encouraged, it’s expected)

Mason Trueblood as Pirate Lennon…I’m guessing legal reasons prevent them crediting him as Pirate John Lennon, but I digress…gets the fun of nearly every response he utters also being a Beatles’ song title, just another layer to the show for the grown-up in the audience. Meanwhile, Pirate Elvis as played by Dan Castiglione, offers a hip-swiveling, lip-curling wink to nearby Memphis and Malcolm Buchanan as Pirate Jack (as in Michael Jackson…more legalese, I’m sure) provides some comical moon-walking, crotch-grabbing and high-pitch squealing.

Having nabbed a spot in the Top Five from Season 8 of So You Think You Can Dance, Clarice Ordaz appears in Peter Pan as Tiger Lily, the indian princess who befriends Peter and the Lost Boys. Albeit bordering on political incorrectness…what isn’t lately?…I personally found the character of Tiger Lily and the rest of the indians, in particular their clever choreography, quite funny.

Speaking of funny, no one in the show is funnier than Ben Giroux as Smee. Smee is Hook’s figural right hand man (remember the captain’s literal right hand was chomped off by a crocodile). Rather than describing Smee as Captain Hook’s right-hand man, perhaps it’s more accurate to refer to him as his second banana, especially since Giroux is so dang hilarious—Google Back to the 90s for a peek at Giroux’s comedic genius. A huge part of what makes this Peter Panto so enjoyable, at least for the over 12 set, is Giroux’s quick witted delivery. As for the kiddies, they might recognize Giroux as the pint-sized villain, The Toddler from Nickelodeon’s Henry Danger. Several side jokes, many playing to the Music City audience by making reference to Nashville-centric themes, are so slyly delivered by Gireox that if you’re not paying full attention, you’ll miss them. One I found particularly humorous made reference to the fact that Tinker Bell wasn’t the only fairy in the story, but I’ll leave that one alone.

Speaking of fairies—the traditional kind—Tinker Bell is enchantingly, buzzily, brilliantly played by current Nashville resident, Diana DeGarmo. DeGarmo, while perhaps best known for being voted runner-up on season 2 of the original run of American Idol, DeGarmo has gone on to star on Broadway, in national tours and numerous regional musical theatre productions. From her opening duet with Tegan Marie’s Wendy on Nature Boy, DeGarmo sprinkles pixie dust, cheer and an entertaining helping of mischief into her portrayal of Tinker Bell. Diana, if you’re reading this, get to the studio ASAP and record your version of Nature Boy. It is ethereal and simply beautiful. Proving she can belt or ballad, Diana provides the show’s most musically glorious moment when she proves once and for all that big things do indeed come in small packages with her show-stopping rendition of the Aretha Franklin classic, Think. I was lucky enough to have been in the audience a few weeks ago for the December installment of Music City’s monthly Nashville House Concerts when DeGarmo performed a preview of her take on the iconic tune and it was marvelous. Should she ever assume the role of Tinker Bell again, I see #ThinkTink trending! An interesting bit of synergy: As mentioned above, DeGarmo got her big break on American Idol, Among Idol’s original producers— Nigel Lythgoe, who just so happens to be Peter Panto creator Kris Lythgoe’s father)

Tegan Marie and Garrett Clayton as Wendy Darling and Peter Pan

As for DeGarmo’s Nature Boy duet partner, Tegan Marie, who not only is the youngest female singer to sign a major country music record deal since Tanya Tucker, is also making her musical theatre debut with this show. As Wendy Darling, Tegan Marie is, well…darling, indeed. Garnering a huge and very devoted fan base of young girls just like herself, she began her career at a very young age by posting videos of herself covering classic songs, so covering The Chainsmokers Don’t Let Me Down as Wendy in this panto seems like a great way to ease her into musical theatre. Not that she needs to be eased into anything. At only 15, she’s so comfortable on stage in the role of Wendy, that playing Mother to Peter and the Lost Boys is a perfect fit. It’s no coincidence, that among Wendy’s songs in Peter Pan and Tinker Bell: A Pirate’s Christmas, Tegan Marie also performs her own current single, Make a Boy Cry within the show, providing another perfectly synergistic moment.

More Music City synergy comes in the casting of Wendy’s younger siblings, John and Michael, as well as the Lost Boys, as all these roles are played by Nashville youth. Alan Harrison Foeder and Lucas Shane alternating in the role of Michael and Andrew Hansen and Jackson Nolan rotating in the role of John.

Then there’s Peter Pan himself, played by former Disney heartthrob Garrett Clayton. After achieving success starring in two installments of the Disney Teen Beach Movie franchise, Clayton’s teen trajectory continued with the recurring role of Chase Dillon on The Fosters which aired on the Disney-owned ABC Family/Freeform network and a starring role as Link Larkin in TV’s Hairspray LIVE! Breaking out of the house of mouse, Clayton turned in a surprisingly adult and critically acclaimed performance in King Cobra, a bio pic centering ‘round the adult film industry, alongside James Franco in 2016. in 2017, he co-starred with his Peter Pan co-star Giroux in the previously referenced Back to the 90s and earlier this year Giroux produced Clayton’s hauntingly hot I Put a Spell on You just in time for Hocus Pocus‘ 25th anniversary. While Clayton continues to showcase his range from drama to musicals, Peter Pan is the perfect role. With his boyish matinee idol looks and boundless energy, he scarcely needs the high-flying wires as he leaps across the stage as the boy who’ll never grow up. His musical moments in Peter Pan are just as cleverly interwoven as the rest. Near the show’s opening sequence, Clayton performs Believe, a song made famous by Josh Groban as included in the hit Christmas movie, The Polar Express. With lyrics: “Believe in what your heart is saying. Hear the melody that’s playing” and “Give your dreams the wings to fly” is the perfect Peter Panto anthem. When he joins forces with DeGarmo on Fight Song the audience can’t help but believe that anything can happen second star to the right and straight on till morning.

Peter Pan and Tinker Bell: A Pirate’s Christmas continues its holiday run in Nashville at TPAC‘s Polk Theatre with matinee performances Friday and Saturday, December 21 and 22 at 1 p.m. and Sunday, December 23 at 11 a.m. and evening performances Friday, December 21 at 7:30 p.m., Saturday, December 22 at 6 p.m. and a final afternoon performances Sunday, December 23 at 4 p.m. Ticket prices start at $35, with a limited number of $25 Rush Tickets available 60 minutes prior to each remaining show’s start time. Click Here to purchase tickets.

Following a brief holiday break, TPAC’s Broadway series returns with the Nashville premier of the touring company of On Your Feet! the Story of Emilio & Gloria Estefan onstage at TPAC’s Jackson Hall from Tuesday, January 15 thru Sunday, January 20. Click Here for tickets or more information. You can also discover all the latest from TPAC by checking them out online or on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.