Camels that want to be on Broadway, a man in drag, and monkeys who throw candy - ?Ali Baba and the 14 Thieves? had everything you could ever want in a Christmas pantomime.

The Bermudian writer and director of the latest Bermuda Musical & Dramatic Society (BMDS) production, Carol Birch, deserves kudos for a hysterical and touching romp across the desert.

Mrs. Birch has been involved with the Bermuda stage for a long time, and has directed several productions, most recently, The Beauty Queen of Leenane. Three of her plays became finalists in the annual BMDS Famous for Fifteen Minutes playwriting competition and one of her plays went on to be produced in Toronto, Canada at the Alumni Theatre.

The setting was somewhere in the Middle East, but ?Ali Baba and the 14 Thieves? had a special Bermudian flavour. For example, there are only 14 thieves because the rest bought out Front Street and retired. And there were actually even fewer thieves than 14, because many had their work permits cancelled. What could be more Bermudian than that?

The story went that Ali Baba had almost saved enough money to marry his sweetheart Morgiana and take her away from a live of servitude. He had enough, that is, until a motley band of thieves led by Mustafa Leak (Stephen Notman) rode in and stole everyone?s money. Ali Baba?s chances of marrying Morgiana were temporarily dashed.

So Ali Baba (Devaune Ratteray) and his own band of formidable friends including Calid the Camel (Nicola Wilkinson) (Back end camel Zina Redthenin) and Bingo the disappearing monkey (Adrian Kawaley-Lathan) set out to get the gold back. Now what was the password to the cave again ... Open Sicily?

It would be hard to pick which actor shone in ?Ali Baba? as the City Hall stage as Bermuda?s best and brightest lit up every corner of the stage. Newer actors to BMDS easily held their own with older veterans.

Devaugne Ratteray, 27, was relatively new to BMDS, but brought with him a degree in acting from the University of Nevada. The professional training showed through in everything he did, and he had a very nice, gentle rapport with the children.

Mr. Kawaley-Lathan, 23, is also relatively new and professionally trained in film and theatre at McMaster University. His portrayal of Bingo, Ali Baba?s sidekick, threatened to walk off with the show. This was a young man with a great deal of talent. He took on the role of Bingo, as though he?d been peeling bananas with his feet his whole life. With easy, self-assured grace he cartwheeled across the stage, bounded up palm trees and leapt over the back of Calid the Camel.

The trouble with camels on Broadway is that they sometimes have trouble co-ordinating their back half and their front half during tap dancing routines. Calid?s two humps had no problem with this and had some impressive dance moves. Calid was definitely headed for Broadway. Look out for the tap dancing camel. Joanne Powell handled choreography.

One difference about this year?s pantomime was that Kelvin Hastings Smith had passed the traditional pantomime brazier on to Gavin Wilson. It was a little strange seeing Mr. Smith down in the audience dressed in suit and tie instead of crinolines and double D cup. Still Mr. Wilson, a veteran of the Bermuda stage, took up the flashing bosoms with relish as O?Penny Sesamie, Ali Baba?s man-crazed mother. Mr. Wilson brought his own bawdy humour and style to his character who had recently lost her donkey. (Someone?s pinched my arse.) A great deal of creativity went into O?Penny?s flamboyant costumes. Nicola Wilkinson, who performed Calid?s front, also designed the costumes.

It?s no wonder that Calid and Bingo communicated so well, since Calid designed Bingo?s ears. The catchy original music and lyrics were written by James Burn and music was directed by Kate Ross. Jenn Osmand as the Spirit sang some beautiful songs that were unusually haunting for a Christmas pantomime. Every pantomime needs a little pathos for balance.

This year, children in the audience were provided with special lights to hold up to ward off the evil Mustafa. The kids had great fun with these. The only trouble was, although it was supposed to hurt Mustafa?s eyes, it never really seemed to have any effect on the character, beyond the odd wince. It would have been fun if Mustafa?s weakness had been exploited more in the script. Perhaps he could have been driven off by a great show of flashing lights, for example.

This year?s Christmas pantomime was well worth attending. By Thursday night several performances were already sold out, and there were only the odd single seat left for other shows. ?Ali Baba and the 14 Thieves? is on until December 16. Check out www.boxoffice.bm for ticket availability or contact BMDS.