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The Bilston Bear Show - Jimmy Carlo
Rhyl Pavilion Theatre
Reviewed by Stuart
Loughland
On 29th October my nephew and I went along to the Rhyl Pavilion Theatre to see a
performance of the first UK tour of Jimmy Carlo’s new venture The Bilston Bear
Show.
The production was a fun packed show from start to finish and was well received
by the enthusiastic family audience. The scenery, props and costumes were of
excellent quality which is something that a lot of production companies tend to
ignore these days with their “it's only for kids attitude”. Even a lot of
thought had been given to the banded merchandise that was available in the foyer
and because of this it seemed to be selling very well.
The simple storyline was fun and was interspersed with games, magic, puppets in
the guise of Tic Toc the talking clock, and also some catchy songs; a lot of
which were written and performed by Jimmy himself.
The show starts with Jimmy as his alter ego Jimbo arranging a band practise in
the Rainbow forest with his main character Bilston and his pal Doofus the Dog.
These costume performers are well cast as they get the story across without
actually speaking as is the bubbly Polly Pigtails as Jimbo’s sidekick who
contrasts his cheeky mischievous character really well.
One of the highlights of the show for my nephew was Jimmy’s version of the “Hole
in my Bucket” song and also the audience participation section when four
children did a routine with him dressed as Rabbits - it brought the house down.
The comedy and magic in the show works really well with children and adults
alike and the whole show had a good feel about it from start to finish.
Good luck to Jimmy and his hard working team with the second leg of this tour in
the Spring of 2008. It’s good to see people out their flying the Variety flag
and putting their money where their mouth is.
©
Stuart Loughland, November 2007