Goldilocks And The Three Bears may not be the first title that comes to mind when you hear the word “panto” – and that’s exactly why the festive show’s director thinks it’s a perfect fit for Aberdeen’s Attic Theatre.
“We wanted to be a bit different,” said Scott Jamieson, writer and director of the panto which is heading for The Tivoli.
“A lot of other pantos are done on rotation – you’ve got Cinderella, Snow White, Sleeping Beauty – so I just wanted to do one that’s not been done before.
“Goldilocks has never been done professionally at HMT. I believe the furthest north it’s been (as a professional production) was Glasgow.
“So hopefully, audiences will come along because they haven’t seen this panto before.”
Goldilocks will bring circus extravaganza to Aberdeen
Scott would like to invite big and little kids to see the amateur theatre production full of “thrills, spills and panto magic” when the circus-themed show opens at The Tivoli on Friday December 2.
He said: “The show is set in a circus and the premise is that our Dame Tina Trott’s circus isn’t doing very well. Her daughter Goldilocks is due to go away with her new boyfriend so they need to find a replacement for her.
“Along the way, they meet the three bears – Mama, Papa and Baby Bear – who end up being the saviours of the circus.”
Since Trott’s circus is facing financial ruin, we wondered whether Scott was inspired by the cost-of-living crisis when he wrote the Attic Theatre’s panto script.
“We do mention it but we don’t touch on it too much,” said Scott.
“I tried to keep away from it because people’s day-to-day life is bad and you hear about the cost-of-living crisis in the news everywhere.
“But we do have a character called Boris The Clown…
“However, the dame is more concerned that her favourite TV show Neighbours has finished.”
More than one panto baddie out to foil Goldilocks at The Tivoli
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Scott added: “We’re coming up to the 10th Attic panto so I’ve tried to tie in some of the old villains that we’ve done in the past. The baddie this year is hoping some of these villainous blasts from the past will help him foil Goldilocks.
“The basic Goldilocks story does appear – she goes in, eats the porridge, sleeps in the bed – but that’s really a small part of the show. We’ve written around it a much bigger story, really.
“There’s a lot more song and dance this year, including a Tina Turner medley and disco and more modern songs.”
And audiences can expect many topical and local references too, with Steven Reid’s Tina Trott being unapologetically Doric. The rest of the cast will “just be Scottish”, and theatre fans may even spot an American character.
New and old faces taking part in Attic’s popular panto
Scott is delighted to welcome new faces to Attic panto but is equally thrilled many seasoned amateur actors decided to return for the 2022 panto adventure, too.
He said: “We have a few actors who were in Jack And The Beanstalk last year that are returning for this year’s production.
“For instance, Zoe Frieslick who played Jill last year is playing Goldilocks this year and Matthew Walker, who was the Barron last year, is back as our baddie this year.”
And that’s not all. Scott hinted a popular character from another panto may be making an appearance too. But to find out who it is, you’ll have to see the show.
Goldilocks And The Three Bears is at The Tivoli from Friday December 2 to Thursday December 22. Tickets can be purchased here.
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