THE GRINCH SPEAKS
* Children: feral children overdosed on festive E numbers fill the theatre and scream, sob and soil themselves with excitement as they are hypnotised by the noise and colours of the show.
* Adults bringing children: obviously there under duress and taking what joy they can from the "adult humour" that will feature intermittently in the script. They will smugly laugh to each other in a "oops, let's hope the children don't understand that joke" cliquey sort of way. When they are not doing that, they are weeping at the thought of the cost of all this joy.
Apart from the odd joke about something contemporary, the only other feature to change in a pantomime every year is the cast. In an attempt to draw in more gullible, sorry, more paying customers, pantomime productions always feature "celebrities". This term is used very loosely and "scraping the barrel" comes to mind when thinking of these Z listers, who you will have either never heard of or had assumed they had been dead for years. These "actors" are nearly always people who have been unable to salvage their career by conventional thespian means but now seek redemption in pantomime. Oh look, it's that bloke who was in Coronation Street, and wasn't that bird in East Enders ....how terribly exciting. These "actors" over-act in a camp "Carry On" old-fashioned sort of way, and ham it up in a desperate attempt to entertain. They work as the puppet masters of the receptive and uncritical crowd, siphoning cheap laughs and audience participation as and when they can. They hold the masses in their hands, who will act as prompted and, in many ways, play as much of a part of this masquerade as these would-be jesters. Oh no, they don't. Oh yes, they do.
THE GRANDFATHER SPEAKS
It's difficult to think of any other British Christmas tradition that is more life-affirming for an adult than a pantomime. Every year it adheres to the same ideas, jokes and conventions as in previous years in a comfortingly predictable way. The scripts are basically reworks of an ageless story, but with a few current jokes thrown in to modernise the storyline and maintain its originality. And due to its massive popularity, upwards of 3 million people jump at the chance to go along to see one. The typical pantomime audience is made up of:* Children: joyful children, replete with Xmas fare, fill the theatre and scream, sob and shriek with wide-eyed excitement as they are hypnotised by the noise and colours of the show.
* Adults bringing children: there as willing chaperones and taking joy from the "adult humour" that will feature intermittently in the script. They will bond with other adults and laugh with each other as they think "oops, let's hope the children don't understand that joke". And giggle over the nob and boob jokes as they reassure their children that, despite what he said, Prince Charming doesn't really want Cinderella to play with his willy.
And the very best part of every pantomime is the cast. As they are always so popular with the paying customers, pantomime productions always feature "celebrities": stars of popular TV comedies, soaps and reality programmes (we saw Gok Wan in the production of Cinderella in Plymouth a couple of days ago). Proven talent to draw in the crowds and keep the punters rolling in the aisles.These "actors" have perfected a very funny "Carry On" style, and ham it up as they entertain. They act as the puppet masters of the audience, pulling the strings for laughs and audience participation as only they can. They hold the masses in their hands as they willingly play as much of a part in this fantasy as the professional jesters. Oh no, they don't. Oh yes, they do.
 |
| And there was absolutely no doubt that these three enjoyed Cinderella. |
No comments:
Post a Comment