Cherwell Theatre Company |

Oxford Times Review by Nicola Lisle

This is Snow White as you’ve never seen it before — colourful, lively, full of surprises and laden with witty one-liners. In Karl Peterson’s hilarious adaptation, the jokes come thick and fast as he weaves the strands of the story with modern parlance. “You don’t need a magic mirror, you need a therapist,” the mirror tells the wicked queen, before adding that she is not the best-looking ‘babe’ in the kingdom.

The original seven dwarfs are now apparently living a life of luxury elsewhere in the valley. It is left to a motley bunch of misfits to offer shelter to Snow White — somewhat reluctantly, until they realise that she is willing to cook and clean for them.

In Peterson’s version there are just four dwarfs; artistic director Nasser Memarzia has added a few more, and they all have very distinctive personalities, such as Whiffy, who never washes, the slow-witted Dippy and the bad-tempered Huffy.

Penelope Tasker is a towering presence as a feisty and petulant wicked queen, and her hilarious dying scene is a highlight of the show. Liam Nooney is equally impressive as the wise-cracking Magic Mirror, while James Snee also raises plenty of laughs with his Scottish-accented Hunter, who has a crush on the queen, though he is appalled at her wickedness.