Dick Whittington 2006

A WORD FORM THE DIRECTOR – IAIN DOUGLAS

It hardly seems a year ago that we produced “Cinderella” at the Palace Theatre, which was the last show there before it closed for its major re-vamp. It certainly was a strange feeling at 10pm on Saturday 7 th January when the final curtain came down after a great run seen by almost 4000 patrons. The society was heading into the unknown. There was a great deal of uncertainty over the future of the theatre at that time, and no-one knew if PPP would ever be able to play at the Palace again. Within a month the council had decided that the renovations were still on the cards, but the hoped for re-opening before this Christmas was not to be. The theatre had to remain closed for a full financial year which meant staying closed until April 2007. When this news broke in February this year, PPP then had to decide where to present this years show. The problems that brought about are detailed elsewhere in this programme. Suffice to say that we overcame those problems (well…we hope we have !!)

So, the upshot of all this is that Paignton Pantomime finds itself in Torquay, for one year only (we hope). There is still some uncertainty over who will run the Palace once it re-opens and the councils constant re-iteration that the amateur’s regular slots at the theatre will be guaranteed appears not to be born out by the wording on the latest tenders. The musicals and plays can be flexible over their dates, pantomime cannot, and PPP are very worried that any future operator might try to grab the panto slot for their own use. We are sure our many patrons (PPP has the biggest public following of any amateur theatre group in the South Devon Area) would have something to say about the loss of our traditional dates at the Palace, if that occurred, and it is impossible to see how a professional pantomime would actually be viable at the venue. In fact any sort of professional theatre at the Palace has shown itself to be totally unviable. The building is a community asset and should be used as such.

Anyway, enough of all that. Back to this years show. As usual, the cast and production team have given of their all to create another magical show. We have had lots of laughs, as usual, at rehearsal. We welcome a lot of new faces into the chorus, and some new juniors as well. Many of the principals will be recognised by our regular patrons but we welcome Stephanie Clift as Alice. She really is a tremendous find. We also welcome back Dean Breyley as Dick, and Jon Witchell has gained promotion from the ranks of the chorus !!

As usual, I couldn’t have done this on my own, and many thanks must go to John, Elaine and Amanda for all their hard work and artistry, and to the entire committee for their support, especially Colin & Rae for their scenic additions, Lydia for her wonderful props (we all love Fido the Singing Cabbage), Jo and Georgie for costume assistance, and a very big thankyou to Clive Simmons who has masterminded the immense technical headache that this new venue has created. The new venue has a very deep and wide apron stage and that has meant much more space for big musical numbers, much to the excitement of our choreographers. Don’t get too used to it girls – its back to the Palace next year. However it has meant much less space for the scenery and technical aspects of the show. Clive appears, at the time of writing, to have overcome all the problems with style. All committee members have worked hard but I have highlighted here the efforts of those directly connected with the staging of the show.

So sit back, forget all that’s nasty in the world outside, and let us entertain you with some seasonal panto cheer. See you next year back out the revamped Palace Theatre.