As a result, unless you are familiar with the song she’s singing, like Katy Perry’s “Rise,” you can’t understand the lyrics. However, Disney Channel’s Lauren Taylor has adopted that back-of-the-throat, sliding singing style which is great for modern pop music, but does not carry well onstage. Morgan Fairchild plays the baroness who is Cinderella’s stepmother, and at this she does a rather underplayed but suitable job. There are always a few famous leads, and this production is no exception. This time, that really doesn’t happen much. Not that keeping adults amused is a bad thing, but the trick is to pull what Warner Brothers cartoons were famous for: making the kids laugh and the adults laugh at the same time, even if for different reasons. For one thing, the show is very talky by comparison with their usual, and many of the jokes are aimed at adults rather than the kids who fill the room. However, with their Cinderella story, they may have hit a few snags. They are interactive, with audience members asked to boo, clap and shout out phrases as the play unwinds, and they have an intentionally over-the-top silliness which can power through any shaky script bits and keep the audience engaged. These shows, written by Kris Lythgoe and directed by Bonnie Lythgoe, are listed as musicals, though the music is usually pop hits and other contemporary favorites maneuvered into a more classic story. The Lythgoe versions have featured Peter Pan, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty and Aladdin, and now Cinderella in their newest, “A Cinderella Christmas.” Always starring a big name or two, the plays are founded on the old British pantos, which featured a well-known story and included in its cast at least one cross-dressed character. For the past five years, the Pasadena Playhouse has chosen not to produce the standard fare, opting instead to invite in the Lythgoe Family Panto as a holiday children’s treat.
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