Rope Drop : The Unofficial Disney Parks Comedy
Written by Jordan Li-Smith & Ayesha Patel ‘Rope Drop: The Unofficial Disney Parks Comedy’ is a chaotic whirlwind show that takes us on the “Perfect Day” around a Disney Park (although they cannot agree which one we’re supposedly at!). It is a heartwarming, peppy and occasionally muddled celebration of all the things us Disney Adults know and love about the parks. This is a show for those of us who love the chlorine filled air of Pirates of the Caribbean, wait hours in one spot on Main Street to get a good view of the fireworks and then wake up at 6am to do it all again the next day!
The key takeaway from this show is the enthusiasm with which it is performed, both Jordan and Ayesha star alone with 2 guest stars at each performance (I got to see Esme Bowlder & Henry Calvert). The adoration for Disney really shines through, and there is a lovely message towards the end reminding us that dreaming is for everyone and we shouldn’t give up on our dreams no matter how old we are. There are some fabulous comedy moments throughout; I will never hear the word ‘Kachow’ in quite the same way now, and the addition of Esme and Henry to the ‘Around the World’ section brought tears to my eyes as they so wonderfully as they all bounced off each other’s energy beautifully.
However, it is not all pixie dust and dreams in this show, a lot of the jokes and references rely heavily on the audience having quite a good Disney knowledge (and as a self-proclaimed Disney adult, with several Disney tattoos, even I didn’t understand some things). If you are more of a fair-weather Disney fan, then you may feel a little left behind at times. In the first half particularly, I was not sure what I was watching as we jumped from joke to joke, not all landing as well as they could, and the pace felt off, but they did manage to pull it back in the 2nd half and get the audience back on board very easily.
As for the performances, Ayesha truly showed us what she was made of, her voice filled the room with huge power and clarity – give that woman a West End contract immediately! Jordan was a wonderful compliment to Ayesha's huge vocals bringing a beautiful tone to the songs they sang together. Esme Bowlder gave us a fantastic Ursula with ‘Poor Unfortunate Souls’ and Henry Calvert though not having his own entire song was a wonderful part of the larger ensemble number towards the end.
Overall, this is a show that knows who it’s for, it’s entertaining if you have good Disney knowledge already and the performers are incredibly likeable. There is a warmth to the show, and you do walk away feeling a little more joyful, but it could use some tightening up to keep the pace consistent and keep audiences engaged.
This show was reviewed on the 6th September 2026 at The Other Palace, London.
Review written by Rosie Browne
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Photo credit : Harry Hope
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