Panto weekend

Pic: Me and Tanya Wenman (Queen Lou and The Cheshire Cat) backstage.

Finally after five months of hard work and countless rehearsals, the Leadenham pantomime came to a close this weekend. 'Alice in Pantoland' has actually been a part of my life since last May when I began to write the script (my second after 'The Genie, The Witch and the Red Robe' for the '08 pantomime). Each performance in the first weekend (30th and 31st Jan) had at least one or two minor hitches - mainly technical problems. I was hopeful that this second weekend would run more smoothly. However, the audiences soon became the main problem. After a small audience on Friday night - due to snowy conditions - I didn't hold out much hope for the Saturday performances. The Saturday matinee seemed to confirm my worst fear, we performed for just over fifty people. They didn't get the jokes and failed to laugh in the places where we thought they would. However, Saturday evening more than made up for the lacklustre afternoon. We performed to a full house of 120 people with every little joke being picked up on. It is a fantastic feeling knowing that something that you've written is actually being performed by and enjoyed by others. The after show party was an excellent way to celebrate all the effort and hard work put in by everyone involved. During this party I was asked a number of times what my ideas were for next year's panto! Truth is, I have no ideas as yet!