All over for another year (oh no, it isn't)!

The most exhausting production of the am-dram year is over.

The pantomime played to ten full houses (well, I think there were a couple of empty seats on Wednesday but that’s it, so occupancy, must be 99.5% plus) who all received it with raucous laughter and rapturous applause. Cast and crew acquitted themselves with honours and should be very proud. The sight of several three year olds doing ‘Gangnam Style’ on the stage was mind blowing.

The standard was indeed very high. We had a new Musical Director this year and a new Choreographer and both have challenged the cast far more than in previous years. And the cast rose to that challenge, although as always at the last minute.  The standard of singing and dancing was superb.

This year was my thirty fifth panto, in some capacity or another, without a break. I have been either a member of the company, had a principal role, been on the crew or directed in every panto since 1978. That’s quite an achievement; maybe I should get a plaque or something. This year was my fifth as Director.

I have always loved silly humour and visual gags, both of which traditional panto excels in. Slapstick never fails to make me laugh, and someone getting a bop on the nose or smack in the face is one of the funniest things ever, in my opinion. But then I love Carry On movies, and was a huge fan of Benny Hill, who was one of the funniest comic actors that ever lived alongside Ronnie Barker. It is significant that Benny Hill, who the UK lambasted as sexist and a dirty old man, made huge money in America (which is the most prudish nation on earth) with his silly humour, where at that time they didn’t go all politically correct about it.

The benefit of writing your own scripts as I did this year is that you can change them if you want to and you can pack them full of the silliest jokes, visual stupidity and mess you want. We had a slapstick scene with the Dame getting the custard pie in the face, a rip off of a popular talent show (which shall remain nameless but has the letter ‘X’ in its title), a performing animal (a real one, not a child dressed up) and all the silly ‘behind you’ and ’oh no he isn’t’ you could possibly want. And the audience have loved it.

Lots of people have kindly said to me that this year has been one of the best pantos they can ever remember, and that is saying a lot because there have been some crackers. But that’s because it has gone back to its roots and not been messed about with.  As an art form it is so deeply rooted in tradition that you change or mess about with it at your peril. The audience has certain expectations – the stereotypical characters with all that cross dressing, chasing about, old jokes we all know, booing and hissing, mess and above all boy meets girl and a happy ending. It doesn’t matter where you set it – China, Arabia, an English village or even in the Wild West, as long as it has those ingredients it will succeed.

I’m not Directing next year and I’m seriously considering having a season off (after all this time I think I deserve it) and there is a certain appeal about having a Christmas holiday without any commitments to a show, but I honestly am not sure whether I will be able to keep away. I’ll go along to the read through and see whether there is a part for me, and then decide.

But if I don’t do it, much as I’ll enjoy the time off I know that come this time in 2014 I’ll wish I had!

Here we go again! (Oh no we don't)

Well, the Christmas Carry On circus starts for another year with successful auditions yesterday for the annual panto, which this year is ‘Aladdin and his wonderful lamp’.

As always on these occasions, I am blown away by the quality of the auditions and the effort people have put in to learn their audition pieces and songs. Yesterday we had a huge variety of songs sung to us, from the classic audition songs from ‘Les Mis’ through to vintage Pink Floyd (a first in an audition as far as I am aware!).

We have ended up with a superb cast at the first attempt and were spoiled for choice for almost every role, which makes a nice change and is most unusual.

Another thing that is nice this year is that as well as the usual faces (I call it the Christmas Carry On because it really is like the ‘Carry On’ movies, with the same faces playing slightly different but very similar roles each year) we have some newbies in principal roles, which is healthy and refreshing. Every Director goes into auditions with ideas about who might be good in which part (show me a Director who says they don’t and I’ll show you a fibber!) but on the day it’s important to keep an open mind because people you expect to be excellent can simply fail to perform on the day, and others you expect to be less suitable or whom you don’t know can blow you away. We had a few of those yesterday, and a few ‘no shows’ who may well be waiting for the phone call to ‘come along and help us out’ which this year, won’t come!

I’m looking forward to this; not only is it my own script and my well honed vision, but it will be my last show for a while as I am planning on taking a break in 2013 and so it is a bit of a temporary swansong. Panto is always knackering with three rehearsals a week and extra busyness over the traditionally hectic festive period, but the end result with ten pretty much full and very appreciative houses is always worth it.

The best part of the day yesterday was the adult movement audition, which was much more fun than the dancers or kids who always seem to pick these things up quickly and move fluidly with very little tuition. I know all these people will get it right and perform in the end, but adult principal performers just don’t pick up the movement as quickly as youngsters and you can see by the expression on their faces that they are going through half an hour of purgatory. I know that I hate it, and they do too. But it’s a necessary evil and provides great amusement for the audition panel mid way through an exhausting day.

We also had almost 30 kids audition yesterday, from which we had to pick a maximum of twelve. It’s really hard to single kids out, and with such a large number sometimes some very good ones can get lost in the crowd. Four bravely came back for a recall late afternoon, and we have a great team in place.

There’s a bit of a lull now, and we start rehearsals on 5^th October. That’s earlier than usual due to other commitments amongst the production team, but it won’t do any harm for them to get some early learning under their belts. We start in earnest with the full on three times a week late October right through to late January, then we all get our lives back.

Bring it on…