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It’s Christmas time. You and the kids are sat in your seats, in one of many glorious theatres and entertainment venues up and down the country. You booked your tickets months in advance and now you are here. People are chatting, children are laughing, you can hear the musicians warming up their instruments and there is a lively, excited buzz about the place. Nothing beats the anticipation of waiting excitedly for a pantomime to start whether you are in the audience, on stage or backstage. Knowing that you are about to be transported to a magical land, filled with great storylines, elaborate characters, and dazzling costumes and sets. The lights go down, the music starts, and the adventure begins. But let’s take a look at where the pantomime adventure truly began and how it got to where it is today.
Early Pantomime Characters.
Let the magical wizards and fairies of Pantoland take us all the way to 16th century Italy. We are now sat in the warm open air Italian theatres watching a type of performance called Commedia dell’arte. Rolls off the tongue beautifully, doesn’t it? It translates to comedy of professional artists. These early shows consisted of dance routines, music, musicians, tumbling acts, and even acrobats. Already we can see the similarities to the pantomimes we see today. They also included their own set of popular characters. Harlequin (Not from Gotham City) was a witty troublemaker who would carry a magical bat, would wear a mask, and dressed in patched up scruffy clothing. He was joined by Scaramouch, who may or may not have done the fandango, I’m not quite sure, but he was a shifty character who coaxed the audience to do his evil bidding. Pantalone, who’s name translates to Pantaloon, trousers or just simply pants in modern English was originally portrayed as one part of a master/servant duo, had excessive greed (Any goodies yet?) and had a high social status. Columbine, which means “Little dove” was often a servant girl. Her costume included a cap and an apron. Pierrot was a lovesick clown who had a crush on Columbine, but she constantly rejected him. Pulcinella, was either played as silly or clever and always tried to rise above his lower social status.
Together, these characters and the performers would wow audiences all over Europe until the 18th century when they made their West End debuts. From then, pantomimes were based on classical stories and set to music, but strangely enough, there was no speech. London audiences loved Harlequin so much so that popular Harlequin actor John Rich built the Covent Garden Theatre from his profits and created a love story between Harlequin and Columbine. Harlequinades were mimed with a load of slapstick comedy. David Garrick was the first speaking Harlequin. Henry Woodward wrote shows for him, that included stories like Dick Whittington and Robin Hood. Over the years, more domestic stories with satire replaced the classical tales and new character stepped centre stage. Joseph Grimaldi's Clown, which eventually took over Harlequin and left him in the dark.
The lifting of the spoken word restriction
More change came along in the 1830s with much better scenery and effects, then, a monumental change in 1843. Theatre licensing disallowed dialogue in performances. Unimaginable these days, right? So, when the Theatres Act lifted the restriction, witty puns, audience participation, and great relevant satirical jokes came into play and were added to the pantomime magical ingredient mix. Fairy-tale characters, Animals, principal boys, and dames started to get in on the action too. Any subject was fair game, as pantomimes combined tales with social satire. In the late 19th century, London theatre pantos could last up to five hours (I hope the seats were comfy) and included stage tricks, lavish costumes, and humongous casts. Pantomimes would open on Boxing Day, hence the link with Christmas.
Stories
Inspiration for stories came in from everywhere. Dick Whittington is based on a real mayor of London. Robinson Crusoe was based on Alexander Selkirk’s real life four year survival on a desert island. The fairytales by Madame d'Aulnoy and Charles Perrault included the stories of Goldilocks, Red Riding Hood, Puss in Boots, Sleeping Beauty, and Cinderella. When Arabian Nights was published, these stories inspired the pantomimes The Seven Voyages of Sinbad, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves and Aladdin.
Principal Boys and Dames
In 1837, Lucy Eliza Vestris play a was the first actress to play a man in Puss in Boots. Shortly after, theatre owner Augustus Harris brought in Vesta Tilley, a male impersonator, and Marie Lloyd, who played principal boys. The female principal boy quickly became an accepted part of pantomimes. Men had played women's roles for decades, as women were banned from the stage until 1660. The obvious masculinity of the dame played a big part of pantos in the 19th century. 1861 brought the debut of Widow Twankey in Aladdin. The character was named after 'Twankay Tea' – which came from China.
Music Hall Stars, Spectacle and Illusions
From 1860, Music Hall performers started to make frequent appearances in in pantomimes. Like today’s celebrities, they brought a lot of energy to the productions and a lot of people too. Set designs and effects became more elaborate making the use of flying systems, and stage traps. Some theatres even had water tanks beneath the stage to create water effects. Lighting, and later, hydraulic stage machinery enabled even better scene changes and effects which attracted and wowed huge audiences. Pantomimes at Drury Lane Theatre became hugely successful, with a budget of almost £10,000 per production.
Modern Day Pantomimes
Even today some of the larger producers and theatre companies can spend hundreds of thousands of pounds on their productions to make sure that their pantomime is as memorable as can be. And it works. Actors, writers, directors, production companies and theatres are repeatedly seeing the same customers come back year after year with their children, and then their grandchildren. Pantomime has evolved even further.
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