There’s something about walking into a theatre in December that instantly resets your mood. The nights are darker, the calendar is louder, and everyone’s trying to do too much at once. Then you step through the doors of the New Theatre in Cardiff and, just like that, you remember why pantomime has endured. It’s not just tradition. It’s not just the jokes. It’s the feeling that for a couple of hours, the world can be daft, warm, and bright, and everyone is in on it together.
This year’s SLEEPING BEAUTY does exactly that. It delivers a proper festive night at the theatre: colourful, noisy in the best way, confidently silly, and packed with the kind of moments families talk about all the way home. It also helps that the New Theatre has brought back a set of familiar faces from last year’s big panto success. GETHIN JONES, OWAIN WYN EVANS, MIKE DOYLE, JACK RYAN and JALISA PHOENIX-ROBERTS return, and it’s immediately clear that the audience is pleased to see them. There’s an ease to a cast that knows the room, and that familiarity pays off. They understand the rhythm of a Cardiff panto crowd, when to let a laugh land, when to milk a moment, and when to keep things moving so kids do not get restless.
You can watch our Meet the Cast Special HERE.
Owain, in particular, has a lovely confidence on stage. He won a national award last year as Best Newcomer in a Pantomime, and you can see why. He has that rare mix of comic timing and genuine warmth. He is playful without ever trying too hard, and he has the sort of presence that makes a big theatre feel friendly. He is also sharp with the audience, quick enough to handle whatever comes back at him, which is an underrated skill in panto where the crowd is practically part of the script.
And then there is MIKE DOYLE, the long-term crowd favourite who has become a proper New Theatre panto fixture. Some performers can lead a panto. Others can steer it. Mike does the second. He reads the room like it’s second nature, and he keeps the show grounded even while the rest of it is happily flying off into glitter and chaos. That steady hand matters because pantomime is a balancing act. It has to feel spontaneous and mischievous, but it also has to be tight enough that you never lose the thread. Mike makes that balance look effortless.
The pairing of Mike and Jack is a pleasure to watch. Building on last years show, they have a real sense of understanding when it comes to each others comedy. There’s a great ‘Elvis‘ routine, which can be a difficult one to get right. With perfect timing, and lovely moments of comedy, they make this one of the stand out moments in the production.
Gethin was terrific last year in his Princely role, this year even more so. You really feel he’s found a proper on stage home, away from the confines of a TV studio. His comedy is well timed, his acting skills are well suited to a part like this, and vocally, he can handle a range of music styles. Really great job Gethin, maybe we’ll see you back next year by royal appointment?
And a mention to for ‘Sleeping Beauty herself. EMMA KIRK is Princess Aurora who is given a twenty-first birthday present by her evil aunt Carabosse, played by Jalissa. She is the perfect pairing for Prince Gethin with Jalissa adding a monumental amount of menace, which had us all booing in the right places.
Visually, this production is a treat. The set is genuinely stunning, filling every inch of the New Theatre stage and making the whole evening feel bigger than life. It has that storybook richness you want from Sleeping Beauty, with the kind of detail that gives your eyes something to enjoy even when the jokes are coming thick and fast. There’s real thought here about scale, colour, and atmosphere. It does not just serve as a backdrop, it helps create the feeling that you’ve stepped into a complete world, and that matters in a venue like this where you want every seat to feel included.
But as usual with a show like this, it would be a mistake to focus only on the headline names. This panto works because it’s a full company effort. The supporting artists bring energy and precision, and the ensemble work is strong throughout. The dance routines are delivered with real commitment, and that commitment is what makes panto land. You cannot wink too hard at this kind of show. You have to throw yourself into it. This cast does.
The music is another big part of the success. The orchestra, under the direction of MICHAEL MORWOOD is fantastic, and you feel them from the first notes. Live music gives panto a heartbeat. It lifts everything: the comedy, the sentiment, the big numbers, the moments when the audience starts clapping along without even thinking about it. The band here is not just accompaniment. They’re part of the engine of the night, and they help keep the show buoyant from start to finish.
One of the real pleasures of this Sleeping Beauty is that it understands the tradition without being stuck in it. You get plenty of old panto standards, the kinds of routines and running jokes that families expect and look forward to. At the same time, the show finds ways to make those familiar beats feel fresh, mostly through performance rather than gimmicks. Timing, rapport, and confidence do a lot of heavy lifting here.
A standout moment comes towards the end, when children are invited on stage to take part in the final number. On paper, that sort of thing can go either way. It’s sweet, but it can also become chaotic and messy in seconds. Here, it becomes one of the evening’s most joyful moments. Mike Doyle handles it perfectly, turning what could easily have been a scramble into something slick, warm, and genuinely funny. It feels inclusive without feeling forced, and it lands as the perfect way to round off the show: a reminder that panto is not just performed at an audience, it’s performed with them.
What really ties the night together is the sense that everyone involved, not just the cast on stage, is aiming for the same thing: to give Cardiff a proper Christmas outing. From the moment you walk through the door, with the front of house team welcoming you in, right through to the last beat from the band, you feel that you’re being looked after. That might sound like a small detail, but it changes the whole experience. It turns a ticket into a night out, and a night out into a memory.
By the end, you leave feeling that rare thing: properly cheered up. The jokes have landed, the spectacle has done its job, the cast has earned the applause, and the whole building has felt like it’s in on the celebration.
SLEEPING BEAUTY at the New Theatre is exactly what a festive panto should be: big-hearted, well-made, and genuinely fun for all ages. If you’re looking for a Christmas tradition to kick off the season, this one earns its place.
The spellbinding adventure is at the New Theatre Cardiff through till Sunday 4th January. There’s a variety of performance times and ticket prices, for details go HERE.
Relaxed Performance
Tuesday 16th December at 6 pm, please call the box office to book.
Accessibility
BSL Interpreted: Sat 20th Dec 2025 at 2.30pm
Captioned: Fri 2nd Jan 2026 at 2.30pm
Audio Described: Sat 3rd Jan 2026 at 2.30pm
