THIS year’s rootin’ tootin’ panto at The Alhambra Theatre, Dunfermline, is the famous Jack and the Beanstalk, with a Wild West twist y’all, writes our Theatre Critic Kerry Black!

Every panto has to have a fairy - it’s a pantoland law! Well in the past I’ve seen soft and cuddly fairies, big, gallus, coorse fairies, but I ain’t never seen a Wild West Fairy before folks!

Yup, Ashley Hope Allan’s Fairy Dolly, literally flew on stage in a sparkle of sequins and fringes, dispensing good ole blonde sensibility, with a drawl straight from Dollywood!

With a wonderful wild west set, right down to the saloon and fabulous stage coach, you could almost have expected Calamity Jane to appear at any moment.

Instead we had the Calamity comic pairing of Fife’s best ever dame, the inimitable Dame Billy Mack as the outrageous Nigella Trotalot, mother of the hapless Silly Billy – the brilliant Alan Orr (in his first Alhambra panto), with his terror of chickens (played by the wonderful children’s chorus)!

Hopefully this pairing will become a permanent fixture. They did everything from the traditional comedy routines, to a Sturgeon and Salmond medley, to the amazing Mission Impossible inspired jewel heist.

They even did a nod to Morecambe and Wise’s bunneted backroom boys! You will believe a Dame can fly!

They were ably matched by the strong vocal talents of Craig McDougall as the hapless Jack, who is tasked with selling his poor, penniless mother’s cow, Daisy, whose eyelashes fluttered more than the dancers!

While Kirsty MacLaren, played his love interest Jolene with surprising strength-what a gutsy singing voice she has!

Every panto need a baddie and Alhambra favourite Mark Hayden, returned as the repulsive Fleshcreep. While the diminutive David McKay, completed the principal cast as the Sheriff and object of Dame Trotalot’s affections.

The sets were a triumph this year, especially the giant and his lair! Full marks to local lass Kellie MacKinlay as Deputy Stage Manager. With Robert Black as Musical Director and Callan MacCormick as Director, this was a slick, tight show, which bounced from one big number to another.

However, special mention must go to the amazing dance team led by Debra Haldane-McNiven, they took the show to another realm with their sparkling, high kicking routines, with the most wonderful array of costumes I have ever seen in the Alhambra.

From the gold sequins of “We’re In The Money”, to the razzle dazzle Vegas show girls of the feathered finale-this was sheer panto paradise!

Since the Alhambra re-opened as a theatre, their panto has consistently improved. They take all the classic elements, plenty humour, plenty sweeties, plenty glitz, plenty audience participation and crank up the budget year on year. Saddle up your crew and mosey along to The Alhambra to join their panto posse! Jack and The Beanstalk runs until December 27, contact 01383 740384 or www.alhambradunfermline.com for exact times and prices.