What is a Pantomime?

Pantomimes, those delightfully absurd spectacles, spring to life around Christmas, and they’re always based on children’s classics—Peter Pan, Aladdin, Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, and the like. You’ll find them everywhere, from Britain’s grandest theatres to the humblest village halls. Whether it’s a glittering professional production or a gloriously shambolic amateur affair, these shows always draw a crowd.

Audience participation is non-negotiable in a pantomime. You must boo the villain the moment he slithers onstage. You must bicker with the Dame (who is, naturally, a man in a frock). And you must shout, “He’s behind you!” when the clueless Principal Boy (who, just as naturally, is a girl in tights) is about to be ambushed.

By the curtain call, the villain is vanquished, love has triumphed, and everyone toddles off for mince pies and mulled wine, basking in the glow of a thoroughly happy ending.

The word “pantomime” itself means “all kinds of mime” (panto—mime). British pantomime, apparently, owes its existence to the masques of Elizabethan and Stuart England—those early entertainments of music, mime, and a bit of drama performed in grand homes. By the 17th century, though, masques had become little more than thinly veiled excuses for lavish theme parties.

The timing of pantomimes at Christmas, and the delightfully topsy-turvy tradition of boys being played by girls and Dames by men, likely stems from the Tudor-era “Feast of Fools.” Presided over by the Lord of Misrule, this riotous celebration involved role reversal, drunken revelry, and general chaos—essentially, the spirit of pantomime distilled into one raucous evening.

It’s ridiculous, it’s chaotic, and it’s utterly British. Bravo.

#xmas #panto