SINGAPORE — Sebastian Tan and Siti Khalijah don’t play the lead characters in Hansel & Gretel (although there’s a thought), but this unlikely pair steals the show in Wild Rice’s delicious new pantomime.

From the former’s turns as a bungling army sergeant lost in the woods with his men and the resident villain chef with ambitions of having a cooking show, to the latter’s presence as, firstly, an opinionated Filipina maid and later as the spunky, hip-hop pedigreed chef’s assistant Nicki Minah, the duo’s impeccably hilarious performances light up the stage.

It also marks a return to panto form for playwright Alfian Sa’at. While his take on Beauty & The Beast (2009) seemed somewhat perfunctory, this fairytale rewrite — the eponymous twins from Queenstown (Dwayne Tan and Denise Tan) get lost in Mandai forest, to the consternation of their father (Dwayne Lau) — feels inspired. There’s a convincing zing in Alfian’s satirical jabs, from allusions to that talked-about HDB estate showcase during Will and Kate’s recent trip, to a Sun Ho-like character (Vernetta Lopez), to a satisfying final word on Malay void deck weddings.

Visually, Hansel & Gretel is also one of the simpler pantos Wild Rice has staged — its set comprising mainly of rotating panels that, with the exception of the localised “gingerbread” house of the baddie, go for a more graphic design feel. With such spatial and visual sparseness, there’s more room for the actors to flex their muscles and shine.

While first-time director, actress Pam Oei, could have tightened the uneven pacing, she also generously turns it into an inclusive showcase — the first time that Wild Rice’s panto kids have gone beyond mere token presence and actually get a generous number of scenes and speaking lines — look out for the forest scene with Sebastian Tan hamming it up with his endearing young soldiers.

MAYO MARTIN

Hansel & Gretel runs until Dec 15, 7.30pm (Tuesday to Sunday) and 2.30pm (weekends), Drama Centre Theatre, National Library Building. Tickets from S$49 to S$69 at Sistic.