Pantomime is a form of theatre that exists only in Britain and a few places it exported itself to, runs only at Christmas, and is almost impossible to explain to anyone who has not sat through one. It is a loud, silly, cross-dressing, audience-shouting family show, and virtually every British person has been taken to one as a child.
The rules
Panto has a fixed grammar, and every production follows it:
- The Dame — a middle-aged female character played by a man in enormous wigs, absurd frocks and violent make-up. Never a subtle performance, and never a drag act in the modern sense; she is a broad comic grotesque.
- The Principal Boy — the young male hero, traditionally played by a woman in thigh-high boots. This convention has faded but survives in many productions.
- The Villain — enters stage left, is booed relentlessly, and encourages it.
- The Animal — a pantomime cow or horse played by two people in one costume.
The audience has lines
This is the part that startles visitors. The audience is not merely permitted to shout; the show does not function unless it does.
- When the villain sneaks up behind the hero, the entire theatre yells “He’s behind you!”
- When a character insists something is true, everyone shouts “Oh no it isn’t!” and the actor replies “Oh yes it is!”, repeatedly, until it stops being funny and then becomes funny again.
- Children are called up on stage. Sweets are thrown into the crowd. Someone gets soaked.
The stories
A small fixed repertoire, loosely attached to the plot: Cinderella, Aladdin, Jack and the Beanstalk, Dick Whittington, Snow White, Peter Pan. The plot is a frame on which to hang topical jokes, local references, pop songs and a great deal of innuendo aimed squarely over the children’s heads at the parents.
The double entendre
Panto operates on two levels at once. Children get slapstick and shouting; adults get a steady run of jokes they will not explain in the car afterwards. This dual register is deliberate, ancient, and the main reason the adults keep going.
Why it matters
Beyond tradition, panto is the financial backbone of British regional theatre. A successful Christmas run can fund a venue’s entire programme for the rest of the year, which means the silly show with the man in the dress is quietly subsidising the serious drama that follows it.
It is also, for a great many British people, the first live theatre they ever saw — which is why affection for it survives long past the age of finding it funny.