Kings Theatre In Portsmouth To Resume Pantomime Season In Summer

The theater that had its Christmas pantomime season cut by the coronavirus limits has planned to resume its shows in the summer.

The Kings Theater, in Portsmouth, was forced to end its Dick Whittington performance on December 18, with more than three weeks to go.

More than 11,000 people were booked to see these canceled shows.

July And August

The theatre said the shows were now scheduled for July and August.

The pantomime was supposed to run its separate segments from December 8 to 3 January but, when Portsmouth was put on the Tier 3 border, the season was suspended.

Theater CEO Paul Woolf said: “It felt like a permanent business closure and more than 11,000 people were booked to see the play while it was still going on

“Putting the Panto back on really draws a line under what we have all been through in the last year.”

The theatre said priority booking would be available to people who had previously bought tickets but missed out.

What Are Pantomimes?

Pantomime is a type of musical comedy stage production designed for family entertainment.

It was developed in England and is performed throughout the United Kingdom, Ireland and (to a lesser extent) in other English-speaking countries, especially during the Christmas and New Year season.

Modern pantomime includes songs, gags, slapstick comedy and dancing. It employs gender-crossing actors and combines topical humour with a story more or less based on a well-known fairy tale, fable or folk tale.

 Pantomime is a participatory form of theatre, in which the audience is expected to sing along with certain parts of the music and shout out phrases to the performers.

Outside Britain, the word “pantomime” is often understood to mean miming, rather than the theatrical form described here.