Another day, another immersive dinner (I’m pretty sure I go to more of these than normal ones…). This time it’s the turn of Darling and Edge to take the Tale As Old As Time, and give it an immersive twist. This is my all time favourite Disney film, so expectations were high.. so, did I feel like they wanted me to be their guest? Or was it a pity and a sin, not quite fitting in?
Darling and Edge come with an impressive pedigree, creating the sets for Gingerline and Goosebumps among others. And yes, the sets did look fantastic, a kind of rumpled adult fairy tale with a splash of Quentin Blake thrown in. The night begins with the guests congregating in the palace, meeting key players in the story including the magnificent boy-belle. Belle is in a spot of bother, having been imprisoned in the castle, and despite several awkward romantic encounters with the Beast, they have yet to fall in love! So, it fell to us to throw a little dinner party and try and get these two star crossed lovers back on track.
Now for me, this fell on the wrong side of panto. I’m aware this is perhaps a personal choice, but I just didn’t find it all that funny, and the audience interaction was slight at best. It was also very hard to hear some of the performers throughout the evening, and if you happened to be sitting at the opposite end of the table to the action – good luck! The actors did throw themselves into the roles though, and a final act twist did give glimpses of what could have been.
And what of the food itself? Some of it looked spectacular (I’m looking at you CHEESE cake) and some it was just brunt sausages thrown in a bowl. You were also left to fend for your self with a limited amount of each dish being shared between large groups. For my table this was fine as we were all very polite, but I did see some people foraging around for missed opportunities. The tables were also packed in super tight, with barely enough room for the performers to get by.
At £45 a head this felt a bit expensive. Given there was no welcome drink, limited food and no coffee, I would have set it at a maximum of £35. So, I can’t whole heartedly recommend it, but if you like a bit of saucy panto and are prepared to throw yourself into it, this might be for you.
Beauty and The Feast is running until 14th January and tickets can be booked here!
London Level Up! Rating 5/10
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