Pantos have been mainly described to me as a quote, "It's behind you!" and that it's a kids Christmas thing. Which made no sense to me as Cinderella has nothing to do with Christmas, and that particular one-liner didn't really paint a good picture. Now that I've been to one of these pantos, that quote is pretty acurate. The actors ask the audience questions, like if their dress is pretty, or if they should eat the apple (eg. Snow White), and, of course, for help finding someone (which apparently is the most popular question). I still don't get the Christmas connection though. :-)
Even though this was supposed to be purely for kids, Alex and I went with his mother and grandmother and we all enjoyed ourselves. Everyone seemed excited for me because this was my first time. The jokes in the play were a bit much for kids I felt though. Tons of adult jokes that I thought (and hoped) little kids wouldn't get. Which I guess made it funnier for us! The two ugly step-sisters were men (Peter and Nigel) in outrageous drag outfits. There was an added character who was the comic relief character of the play, Buttons. He was a standup comic in real life named Brian Conley. This show was by no means polished and the screw-ups and impromtu laughing bouts made it great! Like when one of the sister's wig fell off and one of his/her balloon boob popped. Apparently, these pantos aren't supposed to be smooth, which I guess is half the fun.Check out http://www.its-behind-you.com/ and you'll start to comprehend what these crazy pantos are all about. Merry Christmas.
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