The annual Christmas show at Liverpool’s Royal Court is back, back, back again and this time leaning more towards an adult panto- giving a more cohesive product than its predecessors. Not one crumb is left behind as- oh, sorry- wrong fairy tale…

This year, it’s Red Riding Hood being Scouserfied (I’ve used this term twice now, next step a trademark!)

Writer (and executive producer), Kevin Fearon returns to pen the book with musical director, Howard Gray and direction comes from Mark Chatterton. Aptly named, Scouse Red Riding Hood brings together a cast of familiar faces for those who frequent the Royal Court and tells a slightly altered and brash version of the classic tale.

In the land of ‘Lidlpool’, Little Red (Lydia Rosa Morales Scully) and her best friend, Big Blue (Adam McCoy) go to the moon and back (quite literally) to ensure mankind doesn’t turn into werewolves- all whilst Grandma (Lindzi Germain) is dosed up on Viagra with love interest, Bob the Builder (Liam Tobin). Whilst this is going on, Cash & Carry played by Andrew Schofield and Keddy Sutton respectively are hatching a plan to evict Grandma from her sweet cottage in the woods. Sounds like a fever dream, right? It’s actually a play within a play concept which plays to the theatre’s renowned strengths of not taking itself too seriously.

The three duos are a casting match made in heaven. Scully and McCoy soar with their naïve yet cutting chemistry and vocally excel within the production- more on the vocals later. Germain and Tobin bring the high energy, physical comedy and it’s clear that bond goes far beyond the stage. Keddy, as ever brings a host of characters to life with a multitude of accents, disguises and physical comedy to die for, whilst Schofield shows the legendary Scouse humour with ease through his adlibbing.

What last year’s production lacked, this year’s brings and then some. The music, also arranged by Gray, fits like a glove and expertly moves the narrative along- yes, even Britney’s Toxic works. Lighting design from Ian Scott shows a contrast between the goodies and the baddies and perfectly lit Ellie Light’s stunning set. Light makes excellent use of the theatre’s revolve and their attention to detail doesn’t go unnoticed- a particular favourite to look out for is the leaflet at the chemist in Lidl.

Kate Harvey’s sound design is littered with nostalgia, from quiz shows to animal noises, all adding to the overall hilarity. (A special mention must go to Jamie Jenkin and his video design in the final scene of Act 2- hysterical.)

It would be remiss of me not to mention the incredible band and backing vocalists, Emma-Grace Arends and Chantel Cole (who also plays “Stage Manager” to much hilarity). Arends has a stunning tone to her voice and helps to transition the scenes and the narrative along, whilst Cole gets her big moment in Act 2 with a powerful rendition of a Whitney Houston classic.

With smart references and puns aplenty, the perfect balance of crudity and a powerhouse creative team and cast, this year’s production is a lorra, lorra laughs and I implore you to get on down to the Royal Court for two hours of pure festive escapism.

Scouse Red Riding Hood is playing until Saturday 18th January, further details and booking can be found here.

Tickets gifted in exchange for an honest review.

Photography courtesy of the production.