Author's Note:

Hot off the press, Puss in Boots was our December 2023 panto and it was a full sell out across the week, with amazing feedback. My director this time was a first timer and was keen to have an action filled pacy show with  a show stopping element to it as well.  He also has played a dame at various points and as a result was very keen on a strong comedy dame part (that he very much wanted to play himself but wisely concentrated on directing!)  The villain part had a twist as well in that he was a conartist who adopted different personas depending on what was going on, and the Princess was most definitely the competant one and a guide for the Principal boy in becoming a hero. Dick and Harry, the Broker's men stole all ther scenes and were designed so they could easily have been done as older Principal Boys in the same way as Ugly sisters are done by men. They had a lot to do, linking the good and bad sides together and of course Puss was everywhere fulfilling the usual linkman role and winning over the audience and his own love interest Purrito with ease. We were expecting a large turn out for chorus this time and I was asked to do a chorus which could be on and off in groups - it was just as well because we had masses of people but noone one felt slighted and like they didn't have enough stage time. It was a riot of panto shenanigans, including a running swashbuckling comedy fight through the castle as the good guys try to take back the kingdom, culminating in a show-down between Malacar, the evil shape-shifting villain and Tom, the Principal Boy and of course Puss in Boots himself. This was the showstopper, and we went with a huge three person UV dragon that Malacar became - it nearly killed us making it and being in it, but it cause spontaneous applause every night when it came on, and even more when the good guys managed against the odds to beat it! 

We had a fabulous time and it was great fun!