And so Ladies and Jellyspoons, with just one week until rehearsals kick off in Guildford, we come to the final instalment of this thread, looking at Cinderella and the pantomime itself.....
NB: Obviously everything here, is a general view of the pantomime and is not set in stone. Every production company and theatre have their own ways of presenting the story and every actor has their own way of portraying it!
Our Fairy will usually start us off with a welcome and a heads up as to what a "wonderful girl" our Cinders is. She will usually have a motif or sub theme of her own, for a little added business. The ensemble will usually kick things off, as the front cloth lifts to reveal the village or "outside" Hardup Hall. A common village name is Stoneybroke, referencing the lack of money, although many variations exist.
We are usually introduced to our Heroine, Buttons (the Comic best Pal) and the Baron, before the grand arrival of the uglies. The families situation also varies from production to production but usually the Uglies have either come on ahead of their mother (the Baron's usually engaged) or she has died/left the Baron, who is now lumbered with them. Again Cinders can start either having never met them, so excited about their arrival or already be being treated badly. It's often more preferable to have the former so that Cinders is a little brighter for the opening number.
A common sub-plot set up by Buttons in his intro is his love for Cinders and his inability to tell her. This runs throughout the show, highlighting his devotion to Cinders and often brings comedy through innuendo, jealousy (the Prince) and misjudgement of the situation. Obviously, we all know that Cinderella will end up with the Prince, but we do love a trier!
Throw in a ballet in the woods - keep all the juevenilles parents happy, as their little dears hop around the stage as rabbits, squirrels and birds etc and cue the Prince and Dandini. Here the master/servant switch is established, as Princey yearns for a "simple life" leading to some Shakespearesque comedy with cofused identities. The woods are also where Cinders and Princey meet for the first time and where our Fairy disguises as a beggar woman, prompting an act of kindness from the heroine.
Now I am a massive fan of the slosh scene, but they are, unfortunately appearing less and less in the more mainstream pantomimes. If one is to be present in Cinderella there are a couple of standards often used. One sees Buttons and the Baron, cooking food for the Ball and can involve eggs, flour and custard covering the stage. Another favourite is in the beauty parlour of Hardup Hall, seeing the uglies getting ready for the Ball. Here, huge powder puffs, creams and sprays, become the ammo of sisters eager to outdo the other. The thrid commonly used slosh scene comes from Buttons and the Baron decorating a tattered and tired room or corridor in Hardup hall. this is a physical comedy classic and has been used by all the greats. Rolls of wallpaper, buckets of gloopy wallpaper paste and a ladder lead to chaos, hilarity and two very messy actors!
Before the Ball of course, Cinders ticket needs to be lost or destroyed and good old Buttons attempting to cheer her up. My favourite scene is the dummy ball, where Buttons dresses Cinders up in a table cloth gown, a colander for a tiara and a string of carrots often "9 Carrot". It's all in vain however and Buttons will slip away to bed. Enter the fairy and her shopping list of pumpkin, mice and lizards. A bit of extra magic, supplies us with the transformation scene as Cinders appears in her ball gown before the moment everyone will be anticipating - the arrival of the carriage and horses (usually small ponies). The big companies have used Pegasus the flying horse or flying motorbikes of late - but for me, traditional is best!
We all know about the being "home before 12", running away and losing the slipper, which leads us nicely into the Prince and Dandini touring the land trying to find the owner of the glass slipper. Of course the scheming Uglies both apparently "fit" the shoe, but of course we know its a trick. Expect to see a dummy leg, a long stocking and a reference to "Crystal Palace!" Somewhere they've hidden Cinders away and it'll take all the might of our audience to reveal her location.
Out she pops, the slipper fits and all live happily ever after. The family get money, the Uglies are turned good and Buttons gives his blessing. Just time for the Songsheet before finishing with the wedding (Bows).
JB
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