One of the reasons I wanted to start a blog was so that I could more fully explore all aspects of pantomime – and of course that starts with your choice of pantomime script. Within that, I thought it might be good to talk about the strengths of the stories themselves and some of the stuff specific to my own panto scripts.
So – why choose to perform Aladdin?
First off, it’s one of the great panto stories and will always be near the top of any list. It’s always in my top three most performed titles and in fact, it was my number one pantomime title for the 23-24 season.
One of the story’s many strengths is that the villain, Abanazar, is so central to the action. Unlike some baddies, he’s not operating just out of malice, he also has a very specific agenda. He wants the lamp and he wants the Princess, which means that his reversals are more personal, more humiliating and consequently funnier. And of course, because he’s in a pantomime, we know from the get-go that he is destined to fail.
In both my versions, his story starts in the town or village of the panto itself. He’s already endured a good deal of failure, but has just found a mysterious ring glinting in the gutter, just outside the Co-op, Morrisons, local pub etc etc…
No good pantomime script is complete without some sort of animal. In my original version of Aladdin (Version 1), I wanted to develop the panto animal a stage further. Pandas come from China and so a cuddly panda seemed ideal. And indeed, much of the time Nobby the Panda is as cuddly as they come – but he doesn’t suffer an insult lying down. In fact, when righteously indignant, he’s almost psychopathic, which takes the lunacy and comedy to a new level. I love Nobby!
My second version of Aladdin sets the story in Arabia and the Enchanted Cave becomes a chamber within ‘The Pyramid That Isn’t There’. This version has two animals, Bibi, a monkey, which is a great silent part for a talented young performer – and Fazil, the psychic snake, a glove puppet, who belongs to Abanazar. Of course, Abanazar and Fazil don’t really get on. In fact, they loathe each other from start to finish...
A huge ingredient in any panto is the Dame’s role. In my version 1, the Dame is Widow Twankey. In version 2, she becomes Mrs Gertrude Mahmoud (Gertie) – who runs an English themed restaurant in Cairo. Either way, as Aladdin’s mum, she is central to the story and makes a great Dame’s part and the locations of her laundry in Version 1 and her restaurant in Version 2 both offer great opportunities for set piece comic scenes.
And with the world’s most powerful genie bottled up in a lamp and thrown into the mix, what more could you want?