A performance oozing with pizzazz and panache, peppered with camp innuendo and one-liners – that’s the essence of this year’s pantomime in Bath.

Dani Harmer, who older children will know as BBC’s Tracy Beaker and adults as a 2012 Strictly Come Dancing finalist, was an assured Cinderella, with a great singing voice.

The audience were treated to a display of her dancing skills in the ballroom scene and other contemporary catchy dance numbers, such as Taylor Swift’s Shake it off.

She brought a breath of fresh air to the role of the poor girl who got the chance to go to the ball.

Melanie Walters, renowned as Stacey’s mum in Gavin and Stacey, was amusing as the Fairy Godmother with her pay-as-you-go wand and bubbling enthusiasm.

Bradford on Avon’s Jon Monie as Buttons was as popular as ever, and the younger children enjoyed ‘guarding’ his magic box at the side of the stage, calling for him every time it was in danger.

His attempts to tell Cinderella that he loved her reminded me of certain Jim Carrey scenes and were certainly some of the most hilarious moments of the night.

There were nods towards previous years’ pantos, for example Jon Monie’s superb relaying of the Ugly Sisters’ tongue-twisting demands in the boudoir. It was flawless and far more complicated than ‘Peter picked a peck of pickled peppers’ – you get the idea. He quipped that he had been learning it since July, and the effort paid off.

Aside from Buttons, the stars of the show were definitely the Ugly Sisters David Ball and Byron Mondahl. This is the third time they have reprised their panto double act and hopefully it won’t be the last.

They were suitably nasty, their cry of “Children! We don’t like children” setting my five-year-old’s lip wobbling. They were high up on the nasty list, on a par with Mark Moraghan’s King Rat back in 2011.

Their outfits were sublime: from the animal onesies, to the polka dots and stripes, to the full-blown dinner table dresses complete with cutlery, it was all a triumph.

David Ball, in particular, seemed about eight feet tall complete with boots and enormous hairdos – Lily Savage eat your heart out.

The camp humour was a little OTT in places for my taste but panto tradition wouldn’t be the same without a few boundaries being pushed here and there.

I found Owen Thompson a little overshadowed as Prince Charming but he doubled up well with Bobby Windebank as Dandini.

Cinderella is an all-singing, all-dancing extravaganza which romps along at a cracking pace.

They did former dame Chris Harris, who died this year, proud.