Cinderella Was Such Good Fun!

This pantomime has been good fun all the way from the first rehearsal to the last performance, writes Tim Taylor aka Buttons. There was a lot of work involved too, and times when we all must have wondered why we were doing it.

The auditions took place last September. Most of us hadn’t done anything like this before and so did not quite know what to expect. Rehearsals started and I’m sure we all wondered if we would ever be able to learn all our lines.

All the time we were rehearsing there were people building sets in the village hall, and there was a wonderful team of people making refreshments and clearing up just to keep us going. Children were chaperoned, delivered and picked up. There were all the wonderful costumes, which had been found or made, to be tried on.

At last came the night of the first performance. The back stage crew were everywhere, props in the committee room bar area sorting out all the bits that would be needed, costumes all arranged on racks, the make-up team and lighting technicians and music. The front of house team were there too, organising the interval bar and souvenirs. Changing rooms had been built complete with mirrors and carpets, a children’s room installed and even a special stage door had been constructed.

Ugly Sisters in the Kitchen

Performances themselves are the most amazing fun for everyone. The multi-talented chorus came on and off in various guises as the other cast members paced around backstage trying to work out what was happening and what their next lines were. Curtains came down and the stage crew worked wonders with the set. The Ugly Sisters had to move back to the kitchen each time they came offstage so that they could be helped with their next costume change!

Walking onto that stage gives you get a buzz unlike anything else. The lights blind you but audience reaction is stunning, it really makes it all worthwhile. Mistakes are made, cues missed and whole parts of the play are rearranged by panicking actors. From the stage you can often see into the wings where people are dancing around in time with the songs.

When it was all over we were relieved but also sad. It had taken up so much time and been so important and so much fun that we suddenly realised that we would miss it. So, a big ‘thank you’ to everyone who was involved in Cinderella, especially all the people who worked so hard behind the scenes and on the stage. We had a great time, and judging by the audiences’ reactions, so did everyone who came to see the panto.