FROME Musical Theatre Company (FMTC) are delighted to be celebrating 40 years of pantomime in Frome.
In 1978/79 the company made the decision to put on a pantomime over Christmas and the New Year and performed Jack and the Beanstalk, directed by Cyril and Audrey Gates from Bath.
The company said, “Our performances have grown from six in those early days to the eight we now perform in order to meet demand.
“We are proud to say that there are a number of members involved today in some way or other who were in that first one 40 years ago. Most notably Humphrey Barnes now President of FMTC loved by Frome audiences for his memorable portrayal of the various pantomime Dames and ‘Silly Billy’ characters, and Gill Barnes, who played the Witch in that first pantomime and went on to direct and choreograph pantomimes for over 20 years.
“Over the past 40 years we have performed Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Aladdin, Sleeping Beauty, Mother Goose, Dick Whittington, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Beauty and the Beast, Peter Pan, Goldilocks and the Three Bears, Wizard of Oz, Puss in Boots, Red Riding Hood and Robin Hood, many of them more than once and some, the more popular ones, three or four times. In addition to the pantomimes we also performed Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in the late 80s and early 90s for charity.
“FMTC have always maintained that pantomime should be a family affair suitable for children and their grandparents alike. We are delighted that our audiences continue to increase and we ‘sell out’ over 4,000 seats earlier each year.
“For those of us in pantomime, Christmas isn’t Christmas unless you’re involved in Panto! We have just closed on our Christmas panto for this year, Aladdin, which was hugely popular, selling out every night!
“Next up is Chitty Chitty Bang Bang which will be performed by the company in May, pre-audition rehearsals commence on Wednesday 9th January at 7.30pm in the Frome Memorial Theatre Assembly Rooms. A children’s separate workshop and audition day is on Saturday 19th January from 10am. Newcomers welcome please just turn up! Tickets are on sale from the Frome Memorial Theatre box office open Monday – Saturday 9.30-1pm, visit, call 01373 462795 or buy online via www.fmt.website.”
