Writing A Pantomime

There are thousands of pantomimes staged throughout the world every year, most of them in Britain. Most groups, whether they be amateur drama societies, schools, Women's Institutes or Village Hall committees are constantly on the lookout for something fresh and original. This is often a matter of economics, as professional pantomimes can be costly in terms of performing rights, let alone the cost of scripts. This book is aimed at those people who take part in this increasingly popular hobby, and at the writer who wishes to write a pantomime, either for a local group, or, indeed, for mass publication.

This book offers perhaps the most comprehensive history of pantomime ever written. No other book so thoroughly examines the varieties of pantomimic performance from the early Roman Empire, when the term “pantomime” came into use, until the present. After thoroughly examining the complexities and startlingly imaginative performance strategies of Roman pantomime, the author identifies the peculiar political circumstances that revived and shaped pantomime in France and Austria in the eighteenth century, leading to the Pierrot obsession in the nineteenth century. Modernist aesthetics awakened a huge, highly diverse fascination with pantomime. The book explores an extraordinary variety of modernist and postmodern approaches to pantomime in Germany, Austria, France, numerous countries of Eastern Europe, Russia, Scandinavia, Spain, Belgium, The Netherlands, Chile, England, and The United States. Making use of many performance and historical documents never before included in pantomime histories, the book also discusses pantomime’s messy relation to dance, its peculiar uses of music, its “modernization” through silent film aesthetics, and the extent to which writers, performers, or directors are “authors” of pantomimes. Just as importantly, the book explains why, more than any other performance medium, pantomime allows the spectator to see the body as the agent of narrative action.

Pantomime is a much-loved institution, but how is it created? What tools and processes are used? Working from purely a title, this practical book explains how a script and a design can develop together through the creative processes to culminate in the wonder and excitement of a unique production on opening night. * Explains how to get started in writing and designing an original pantomime * Uses major professional productions to illustrate established techniques and new innovations * Examines pantomime traditions and scene structure and how these can be utilized in productions today * Describes how staging design can influence the narrative * Looks at how pantomime characters develop through their costume * Explores the tricks and magic essential to pantomime Shows visuals from a range of production from small regional through to large commercial pantomimes AUTHOR: Joyce Branagh has been directing professionally since 1994. Her work ranges from Shakespeare to new plays at theatres throughout the UK and Ireland. She has directed successful pantomimes at Watford Palace Theatre for several years, either developing the script closely with the writer or being the principal writer. Keith Orton has worked as a professional designer since 1991, as well as tutoring at Central School of Speech and Drama. Recently he has specialized in pantomime design working with Joyce Branagh exclusively. He has a particular interest in how design can help and influence the development of new writing. ILLUSTRATIONS: 180 colour photographs *

"The study discusses all the key ancient sources for pantomime, and includes an appendix of selected source texts with translations keyed to the essays. It also prints a newly updated English translation of Jacob of Sarugh's Homilies on the Spectacles of the Theatre, one of the most important, though neglected, pieces of evidence for pantomime."--BOOK JACKET.

Comedian and actor Paul Harris has brought together an hilarious collection of theatrical material, much of it originating in Victorian times and refined and updated in many pantomime productions since.

From the Sunday Times bestselling author of Seven Devils 'A fantastical, richly drawn, poignant take on a classic coming-of-age story' – Leigh Bardugo In a land of lost wonders, the past is stirring once more . . . Gene's life resembles a debutante's dream. Yet she hides a secret that would see her shunned by the nobility. Gene is both male and female. Then she displays unwanted magical abilities - last seen in mysterious beings from an almost-forgotten age. Matters escalate further when her parents plan a devastating betrayal, so she flees home, dressed as a boy. The city beyond contains glowing glass relics from a lost civilization. They call to her, but she wants freedom not mysteries. So, reinvented as 'Micah Grey', Gene joins the circus. As an aerialist, she discovers the joy of flight - but the circus has a dark side. She's also plagued by visions foretelling danger. A storm is howling in from the past, but will she heed its roar? 'A lyrical, stunningly written debut novel' – Amy Alward