Cinderella: Traditional Panto for Mosman

Mosman Musical Society (MMS) will be performing Cinderella in pantomime, in Mosman, for the 2014 Christmas season. The traditional story of poor Cinderella defying her evil step mother and ugly sisters through the fairy godmother’s magic, attending the ball, the clock striking at midnight, and the glass slipper that leads the prince to his love, all feature in this modern stage production. And true to the traditions of British pantomime, the ‘dames’ are played by male actors, the prince by a female and there is plenty of comic stereotype and slapstick humour.

The script (by Norman Robbins) centres around Cinderella, Prince Charming, Cinderella’s father (the Baron) and his new wife (the evil Baroness), the ugly stepsisters, Cinderella’s faithful companion (Buttons), the prince’s squire (Dandini), the Fairy Godmother, and the ‘broker’s men’, a traditional pantomime term referring to a panto’s comic duo. These roles are played by MMS members who have all performed in MMS shows in recent years, with the exception of newcomer Rhys Briggs. The 16 year old Killarney Heights High School student plays Buttons, Cinderella’s faithful servant (an addition to the Cinderella fairy tale) and is enjoying his first pantomime and the British banter that characterises the script.

Director Anthony Young says, “The great thing about this cast is that they have all worked together before – there is a natural camaraderie, banter and trust that is so important in a pantomime. It’s also great having local kids involved – they really help us to remember that our ultimate audience is children, and they are so much fun to work with, especially teaching us pop songs and dances! We also have a British contingent in the cast who are our cultural experts in all things panto, and have helped us to adapt the script to an Australian audience.”

Cinderella’s evil step mother Baroness Medusa Hardupp and cowardly father Baron Hardupp, are played by Susan Boyle and Jody Rose (the society’s president) who are also married in real life! Cinderella is played by Jessica James-Moody, and by coincidence Jody also played Jess’s father in the society’s 2012 performance of Xanadu, where Susan’s character was also called Medusa! Jim Coyle, usually conducting MMS as musical director, makes a rare appearance on stage as one of the ugly sisters.

As well as the main characters, the pantomime features eight children aged between 7 and 13 years from local areas and schools – Middle Harbour Public School, Willoughby Public School, Lane Cove Public School and Loreto Kirribilli. The show also features dancers from Greenwich Dance Centre.

Performances are at Middle Harbour Public School on 29 and 30 November and 6 December. Tickets are priced $30 for adults, 25 for concessions and $20 for kids, with family discounts, available at www.trybooking.com/108822.  Audience participation is actively encouraged – ‘boo’ at the baddies, cheer for the goodies and scream at the comic characters when they don’t quite get things right!