The History Of Lilleshall Pantomine
Sleeping Beauty - 1991
At the end of the previous pantomimes, with everyone drained from the sheer effort of putting on a Show for the paying public, the same cry would be heard "Thank goodness, we made it. I don't know if we can do another! There is too much to do..do we really have the time?".....but the thought never lasted. Within days people were talking about what to do next time!
It had all seemed so innocent when Gillian Hornby and Graham Gibson had met at a Church Council meeting and talked about reviving a village pantomime; something that had happened many years ago. Now it was four years on, several youth drama productions later, and what seemed like a million rehearsals, most of us were now seriously hooked! Our fourth pantomime was about to go into production. We had now got a stage extension, side wings, numerous props, including a working sausage making machine, canvas backdrops and a ever growing costume cupboard.
Those early hesitant meetings, four years ago in the local youth club building had grown into a well equipped and well run company. Many people were still involved but new members had joined, some had left to seek new adventures, going to university, joining bigger light operatic companies, sadly moving away from the village but their contributions were not forgotten.
Sleeping Beauty, written jointly by Graham Gibson and Celia Fox, was a magical pantomime to do, with beautiful costumes and special effects, not least the sleeping scene for the whole palace which ended the first half and brought gasps of delight from an appreciative audience when the interval ended and the same scene opened the second half (A hundred years later)looking as if no-one had moved, but covered with the most delicate realistic cobwebs you might ever had seen! A real triumph for the cast!
A cast of seventy were involved in this production. A real experience for the thirty children who were under twelve years old! Graham Gibson took over the role as director this year as Mavis Francis who had directed our previous productions, decided to turn her talents to acting! She took on the role of the wicked Carabosse.
Six months of rehearsal and organisation had gone into being ready for opening night and once again the Cast and Tech' crew did not disappoint the increasingly loyal and growing audiences.