As panto season gets underway if you are looking for something different this year then the musical Miracle on 34th Street might be just the show for you.
Being a huge fan of the 1947 film and the 1994 remake I was thrilled to be in the audience at Manchester’s Opera House for the first of a two-night run.
In 1950s New York a very cynical Doris Walker is in charge of hiring a last minute replacement Santa Claus for Macy’s department store.
Her young daughter Susan, having been told time and time again that fairy tales and Santa Claus don’t exist develops a heart-warming friendship with the new employee Kris Kringle and is amazed when she learns and starts to believe that this is actually the man himself!
The jolly, loveable man ruffles feathers when he starts advising customers to shop at cheaper stores for their Christmas gifts as he continues to insist he is not a fake.
After being sacked, and with the store’s psychologist trying to get him committed it is left to Susan’s neighbour, the likeable lawyer-bachelor Fred Gaily, to represent him in court and prove to Macy’s, New York City and most importantly to Susan that Kris Kringle is no liar and truly is the real Santa Claus.
I won’t spoil the ending if you haven’t seen it but this production is a good old-fashioned dollop of Christmas spirit.
The stage is arrayed with colours and costumes are bold and bright. Scene changes are basic but effective as we follow Kris Kringle through the two acts of Macy’s toy department and the courtroom.
The central character played by Danny Lane holds the show together; he plays a perfect Father Christmas and certainly looks the part.
I am not too sure I like the character of Susan being played by an adult, it all seemed rather odd to me.
Although Hannah Thompson is a accomplished actress this choice means some of the wide-eyed innocence and magic of the films is a little lacking.
All the cast give powerful performances and have excellent vocals but the songs are for the most part rather forgettable.
The American accents are a bit hit and miss – now you hear it, now you don’t, but overall it is a festive outing which you can’t help but get swept up in.
The scene where we learn mum and daughter now believe in Santa Claus doesn’t give a clear enough explanation how they have come to that conclusion, I would have liked to see a run-up to the moment things change. It all seemed a bit rushed and disjointed towards the end.
However, audience participation is a must for the closing numbers and the added delight of snow drifting down from above left myself and my mum full of the joys of Christmas as we headed out into the cold winter’s night.
Miracle on 34th Street runs until Tuesday 25 November. Buy tickets online here
