Irish Times reviewers give their verdicts on Mouseio's Magical Christmas and a performance from David O'Doherty, Moya O'Grady and Geraldine O'Doherty

Mouseio's Magical Christmas at the Tivoli Theatre, Dublin

Children can't wait for Christmas, when, traditionally, they are pampered, stuffed with sweets and cakes and get lots of presents. This very young children's panto features all of those elements and, not unusually, glorifies them to create a feel-good atmosphere, encouraging more conspicuous consumption of material goods.

Mouseio (Damien Devaney), an outsize stage Mickey Mouse (who needs to watch his cheese intake - maybe Santa will bring him a bathroom scales and an exercise bicycle) is the lord of his Magic House. He lives there with Zuikio (Nicky Drew) and Babeio (Hazel McLynn), the other components of his mouse family, and Beakio (Joe Doyle), a plain-talking feathered friend. Babeio's primary concern is: "Presents, I just love presents, I hope, get lots of presents, did I forget to mention presents?" and has his heart set on a hippopotamus - much to the concern of his parents, who can't imagine how Santa (Robert O'Connor) is going to get it down the chimney.

But, as the second act reveals, it is Santa, who has swallowed not only the consumption ethos but also all of the sweets and cakes left for him on the table, who blocks the flue. With Mr Claus stuck up the chimney, Mouseio's mob sings and dances until, aided by some sorcery from Santa's Magic Book, they come up with a teamwork solution to extract him and rescue Christmas.

The dozens of young children present, dressed up to the nines and brandishing the blinking paraphernalia sold by elves before the show started, loved it: dancing, laughing, yelling their greetings and responses on cue and ever louder.

But Mouseio's Magical Christmas lacks the beauty and atmosphere of, for example, the Christmas stories of Astrid Lindgren, which empower children and give them a sense of the real meaning of giving and receiving.

And Mouseio knows it, too: as he unpacked Babeio's stocking, pulling out a CD of the music they'd been singing (on sale at various points in the theatre), he muttered quickly, but not inaudibly, "shameless profiteering". God bless us, everyone.

Christine Madden

David O'Doherty (violin), Moya O'Grady (cello), Geraldine O'Doherty (harp) at the NCH John Field Room, Dublin

^{_{Sonata in E flat ............................................................... Dussek}}

^{_{Sonata in B flat ......................................................... Geminiani}}

^{_{Adajio in G minor ..................................................... Boccherini}}

^{_{Serenade .............................................................. James Wilson}}

^{_{Libertango .................................................................... Piazzolla}}

The lunchtime concert in the John Field Room was in honour of St Cecilia whose day it was, being November 22nd. The mood was set by the gentle and civilised sounds of Dussek's Sonata in which Geraldine O'Doherty's playing of the harp was most winning but no more so than Moya O'Grady's cello in the Boccherini, an arrangement from one of his concertos.

Even James Wilson's Serenade, dedicated to Moya O'Grady and receiving its first performance, did not interrupt the mood despite being in the idiom of our time. It made good use of the style and talents of this ensemble which is adept at bringing out the sweetness inherent in a piece of music.

David O'Doherty played a Sonata for Solo Violin by Geminiani whose sharper harmonies were surprisingly forward looking. If the other works in the programme tended to lull the attention, this alerted it.

Piazzolla's light-hearted Libertango sounded extremely well in the present arrangement and formed a pleasing conclusion to the recital.

Douglas Sealy