Summer has only just packed her bags and left, but Christmas already looms large on the horizon.
The cast of The All New Adventures of Peter Pan flew into the Royal & Derngate for the official media launch of this year’s highly anticipated Christmas pantomime.
Last year’s Cinderella was a smash hit, and the same production team is back at the helm. Evolution Productions’ Emily Wood is co-directing alongside Gordon Cooper, who is multitasking once again by taking on the role of Dame Dolly.
“I’m actually going to be nice this year,” he quipped. “Watch this space.”
John Thomson—well known from Men Behaving Badly, Cold Feet, Coronation Street and The Fast Show—will be stepping into Captain Hook’s infamous boots (and yes, hook included). Asked about impromptu stage mishaps, he recalled:
“The last time I played Hook, I went on without my hook and had to improvise a new kind of dance, swapping hands behind my back to hide the absence of my hook.”
So what kind of Captain Hook can Northampton audiences expect? Think flamboyance with a touch of Terry-Thomas, veering from wicked to ridiculous. “I have a bit of a mood board in my head and take inspiration from different people,” said Thomson. “The beauty of the panto villain is winning the audience over with humour.”
Adding sparkle to the cast is BAFTA-winning CBeebies presenter George Webster. Fresh from
performing in Strictly Come Dancing Christmas Special with professional partner Amy Dowden, he’s promising a few dazzling new routines in Neverland.
The press launch was the first time the cast had met. “I’m a good judge of character,” John said, “and I think it’s going to be one happy pirate ship.”
The pantomime promises a little bit of everything for the family. For many children, it will be their first experience of pantomime. John says: “It’s magical being part of the first experience of pantomime for children. When they’re really little, it’s as if the characters on stage are real. The princess is a real princess; the fairy can fly. They have that lovely belief. Our job is to help them suspend that belief and to bring the magic of pantomime to the whole family.”