Aladdin: The Rock ’n’ Roll Panto at City Varieties Music Hall is a Festive Riot

Features

Posted on December 23, 2025

Even as someone who purports to know the Leeds culture scene (and as a regular at Leeds Grand), I have to admit something: I’d never actually been inside City Varieties Music Hall. So when I went to review Aladdin: The Rock ’n’ Roll Panto for H&N Magazine, I was excited for the experience the venue as well as the show.

I brought my husband James and our two boys, Isaac (11) and Elijah (9) with me, as let’s face it; there’s no better way to test a family show than with a musician’s ear beside you (my husband is a drummer in his spare time), and with two children who will declare, instantly and without any guile, whether the music is any good and if the panto magic is real!

Before a line was spoken, City Varieties had already done some of the hard work regarding generating that elusive ‘magic’. This is Leeds’ oldest working theatre. A Grade II listed Victorian music hall, and stepping into it feels like stepping into a piece of the city’s living memory. Inside, it’s cosy and jewel-like. Traditional plush reds and gilded details abound, there are balconies, plus seats lining the edge of the floor as well as the centre, giving a quaint, historic feel. The space is intimate, which is great for enjoying the performance, as the music is loud and immediate and the laughter travels fast!

The premise

The story keeps (roughly) to the familiar ‘Aladdin’ format: a local lad – “a lad in Leeds” in fact (geddit?) – who with more charm than cash, meets a princess craving freedom. There’s an unwanted bargain with a villain and of course the lamp that changes everything. City Varieties’ version is proudly and wonderfully local in its flavour as our hero is Alvin, and his world, is frequently punctuated with Leeds nods that make the audience feel fully in on it. Abanazer sets the plot in motion with a scheme to get his hands on the lamp, and Alvin’s life becomes a whirlwind of near-misses, mistaken intentions and the best kind of panto chaos.

Why this panto feels different

The single biggest difference is also the show’s greatest strength. The cast are actor-musicians, playing live on stage as well as acting and singing.

It’s fun, fast paced with such a tight cast of excellent musicians that it’s never a novelty but instead a fantastic experience. The music drives the story, with scene transitions which keep their momentum because the sound never drops. The comedy timing is musical as well as theatrical and the overall atmosphere is closer to a gig than a conventional family show, with all the live energy that entails!

James loved that element instantly. “It’s the real-time musicianship,” he said, buzzing at the interval (something not often seen from my husband, who can be a typical staid Yorkshireman!), “You can’t fake that tightness and craft, they’re like a band but staying completely in character!”.

Isaac’s verdict was equally enthusiastic, if rather less technical: “The songs were brilliant… and the jokes were so rude.” (Oh, he was so delighted.) Meanwhile Elijah, announced: “It’s my favourite thing we’ve done this Christmas” and “I really like how everyone’s allowed to shout.” Which, frankly, is everything you want a panto to be!

The Performances

There is one rule of panto that rarely fails: it lives or dies on its Dame. And Simon Nock as Dame Tallulah Tightbottom / Widow T, is quite simply, a masterclass in panto control. He knows exactly how to pitch a line so the children catch the silliness while the adults catch the second meaning (and he does it without ever losing the heart and warmth). Nock absolutely nails that balancing act; playing close to the line with innuendo while keeping the show genuinely family-friendly. He’s also fearless and expert in his audience work, with perfectly timed looks and the ability to pull a response from the room without breaking the flow.

Lucy Wells as Genie arrives with a strong stage presence that re-sets the room in the best way. She’s a dazzling genie with real rock vocal power, and she delivers both vocal prowess and starry sparkle.

A big part of the knowingly wink-wink joy is how confidently the show plays to its home crowd and Harry F Brown keeps the pace, puns and fun flying as the title star. Dan Carter Hope as The Emperor and Laura Andresen Guimarães as Princess Peachblossom keeps the story grounded adding warmth. And the scenes with Abanazer and the Dame together are a joy, with a delicious double-act energy full of bickering brilliance and perfect timing.

A theatre with a heartbeat

Part of what makes this show work so well is the partnership between production and place. City Varieties isn’t a neutral container; it’s part of the experience. Its music-hall heritage suits a show that thrives on direct address, live music, heckling, and shared laughter; the very things the venue was built for.

It’s a brilliant panto, but I also left feeling that we hadn’t just watched a show but had also stepped into a Leeds tradition, and one I’m slightly amazed I hadn’t properly seen sooner!

Aladdin: The Rock ’n’ Roll Panto is loud, joyous, musically accomplished and very funny. It knows exactly what panto is for: making families laugh together, and in a theatre as iconic as City Varieties, that shared laughter feels like its own kind of heritage.