That is a brilliant explanation! Or at least it is for now, but I fear me that soon the comedy variety show with a fractured fairy tale will soon be forgotten. But until then, long live the Elephant story.
Ah, so that's panto. I always wondered because when I watched a UK soap in the past, a character would just vanish or go on a long holiday. People are like it's panto season for their absence like that explains it. Makes sense that if panto season is around the winter, it's a bit of fun and silliness while everything is cold and dreary out.
Totally, pantomime season these days goes from the beginning of December to mid January and they really are all round good fun thats safe for all ages when they're done well. If you ever get chance to go do it!
Unfortunately I can't get an international link but if you Google "bbc world pantomime" you should be able to see a short video on panto being taken to New York in 2018. One of the British actors involved is a friend of my partner's, which is why the BBC has it as a story.
Also, with so many schools never putting on plays or musicals themselves these days, the local amateur panto is a big starting point as kids for a lot of professional actors in the UK
Until 1843 they were mimes, with much of the performances given largely in dance form, mime and visual comedy. The harlequin often played a significant role in this. In the years leading up to 1843 theatres had to have a special patent to use spoken dialogue, and not many theatres had a patent. In 1843 the law changed and we started to see pantomimes with spoken word. And then they tended to all be spoken in rhyme, which you don’t see so much of now.
When I lived in the UK, I was also confused, because the word pantomime refers to silent acting in Finnish. Finally, we saw a Panto in Durham Theatre 😊
Pantomime is from the Greek for "I mimic all". It WAS miming until only a few centuries ago when it started to refer in English to what's more an adaptation of commedia dell'arte Essentially the art changed forms but retained the original name
It's also the best defence against the bigoted clowns complaining about drag acts telling stories to kids. Pantos are essentially one great big drag act telling stories to kids, in the campest way possible, and nobody goes around trying to shut them down, because everyone sees them for what they are: a bit of harmless fun that children, particularly, adore.
@@somniumisdreaming What a weird opinion... Drag Acts do not HAVE to be unsuitable for children, and many of them, in fact, are very family-friendly with no references to anything sexual or whatever. However, if the only drag acts you go to are made for the mature audience, I could see how you would come to the incorrect conclusion that all drag acts are unsuitable for kids. But that's more of a "you" problem. In the same way that, while x-rated movies aren't suitable for children. It doesn't make ALL movies unsuitable for children. But if the only films you've ever exposed yourself to (oo-er!) are pornos... Do you see the problem? I will admit, however, that I'm using hyperbole in calling a panto a drag act, although they do share extremely similar characteristics and always feature at least a male and often a female in drag.
Forgot to mention that the local am dram pantos are sometimes complete chaos - one of our local troupes is literally called BAD and they get drunk as skunks, along with the audience.
There were a few pantos online during the pandemic that might still be there. They’re ridiculous when you’re watching from home but in a theatre of kids hyped up on sugar (or adults on alcohol) they’re hilarious. I always loved that there was zero effort for the men or the women to look like women or men (when playing opposite parts) you were just expected to believe it.
The origins of pantomime in commedia dell'arte (and court masques and restoration spectaculars) are fascinating to me! It's such a weird thing, a cultural staple that doesn't exist elsewhere (as far as I'm aware).
We're a strange country, people will get into screaming matches on tv about who's allowed to wear skirts or trousers then go to a panto where its old tradition for the men to be played by women and women to be played by men. Im not sure in all my years ive seen a male actor star as a male protagonist.
I used to go to a Christmas pantomime every year as a child in Melbourne. We did all the audience participation, had the Panto Dame and the wicked moustache twirling villain and everything. I saw two pantos in London when I lived there in the 80s and 90s. Lulu was Peter Pan in one, I believe. So magical! So much fun! I don’t know if they still do them in Australia. If we do, they are not a big thing, sadly.
Thank you for this! I've been hearing references to panto for years, and never seen anyone do a video on it, despite seeing lots of videos about differences between US and UK cultures.
There is a great deal more to the wonderful lore and traditions of pantomime than is shared here. If your interest is piqued I would encourage further exploration. However, watching one on a screen robs the experience of the vital live and participatory elements (for many Brits this is their first live theatre and, boy, what a way to start!) so if you get the chance, don't hesitate to go and see one (as well as the UK, Australia maintains the tradition. It is NOT sophisticated but you'll never have so much fun in a theatre.
I'm from Toronto and we had a Panto Christmas play put on every year until last season. I think they only stopped because the driving force behind them, Ross Petty, retired. I absolutely loved them as a kid.
In Vancouver there is a large Panto community. There are five or six theatres I can think of off the top of my head that do them, and I'm sure there are more in the Fraser Valley.
Ah, panto. Something I've only ever seen cbeebies do, as I'm from the mainland, but it still holds a special place in the memory of my childhood none the less.
I used to love going to see pantomimes as a kid. they never had them in Aus so when we went to the uk and ireland to spend time with my dads family for christmas it was always a special treat for us kids.
Awesome video! Im opening an immersive exhibit on the history of panto at my gallery on Drury lane in a few weeks. I'm a longtime fan of your channel and would be honored if you dropped by.
Thanks. Not only theaters make all their money now but for one of my mates, who's a actor, it's the only time of the year he's employed as either a villain or a dame.
I was on a theater education tour as a kid in the 1980s right after Christmas, and was dragged to many of these. I'd been raised that you were SILENT during a theater production, so I was flabbergasted by the experience. When I studied in Oxford in 99-00, we went to the panto at...whatever that big theater is there, near the Ashmolean. Being in the know, and in my twenties, I had an absolute blast, but I think some of my friends were a little overwhelmed!
The logical thing to do here is to demonstrate a panto online as CZcams live-stream with audience participation via the comment section. Could this be done as a one-person operation? Very possibly not, but it's an interesting thought to conjure with.
👍👍 My US friends, I see it like the skits you might come up with at summer camp? Lots of silliness, all in good humour, and everyone kind of gets it because they're all pulling from a traditional form or a popular story?
But also with musical theatre, pop culture references, sometimes innuendo for the grown-ups depending on the theatre along with kid-friendly jokes, and certain audience participation in-jokes that every panto uses, such as the protagonist looking the other way when the baddie comes in, the audience shout "he's behind you" and they switch sides so the goodie thinks the audience are lying, or a call and response of "oh no it isn't"/"oh yes it is".
Oh, so "panto" = "pantomime"? Why didnt that occur to me? When you hit a British word the puzzles you, always ask yourself: "could this be an abbreviation of a word I do know?" 😄
Is this part of the reason so many television shows have Christmas Specials that are like an hour or more long, as well? In the States shows will usually do a Christmas themed show but it will usually follow the time schedule and general outline of the rest of the show. But I’ve noticed that in UK TV there is usually a one-off, much longer, grander episode that is almost like it’s own thing as a Christmas Special.
Thanks for the explanation! Carrie Hope Fletcher has talked about doing Panto in some of her videos and I had no idea what she meant so this really helped
I would also add if it's certain panto not just is there one person in drag almost all roles maybe reversed, so the leading man is a women dressed as a man.
In Peter Pan especially, the title character is often played by a woman. Sadly Snow White in panto is also often some of the only work that short actors can get, Warwick Davis being the notable exception.
Same energy - very camp, very tongue-in-cheek, lots of 'flipping the script' (men played by women, women by men). For the live performances of RH, it's like that, but more - the audience are encouraged to interact and break the 4th wallin panto, it'sa collaborative experience. Also, in most pantos I've been to, it's traditional to throw Wagon Wheels (round chocolate 'candy bars') into the audience for the kids.
I love the remark at the ends. It just reminds me how I am part of a country that thought it was a good idea to make an aircraft carrier out of frozen wood (project Habakkuk)!
I mean... The Mosquito was one of the most successful fighter bombers of the 2nd wold war, and that was built almost entirely out of plywood and balsa. Never underestimate the terrifying majesty of a bunch of Britons in a shed with limited resources. 🤣
@@stephenlitten1789 Spot on. Necessity is the mother of invention, and scarcity is the mother of innovation. Basically, don't put someone's back up against a wall if you don't want them to headbutt you and knee you in the knackers.🤣
This is why I don't get the imported culture war outrage over drag queen story hour. British parents have been taking their children to see what is essentially a drag show every Christmas for as long as anyone can remember.
@@Arkelk2010 have you ever even been to a panto? It's full of innuendo, perhaps it went over your head. Drag queens reading children's books to children is not sexual.
Republicans wanted a Bogeyman after segregation, gay and now abortion. Republicans don't give a damn. They just want something to scare their moronic bases. Don't for a second think that Republicans care about female safety. They always attack the SA victims, sl** shaming them. Heck Gym Jordan and Matt Graetz is still in the office. They want to bring back traditional gender roles. They attack any women who don't conform to it Calling them trans. They are still "convinced" Former first party, Michelle Obama is a man.
My Nana was from England and worked for the local British theater troupe when I was a kid. So I grew up with pantos. Those are some of my most treasured childhood memories! ❤️
Was taken to panto on a visit to Manchester with my family. The producers put in a joke about our American background. I had NO IDEA what we were about to see. 25 years later, the family still sings “There’s a worm at the bottom of the garden….” at the mention of panto.
At some point in the 1980’s spirited actors started a ‘crazy Christmas cabaret’ in Copenhagen Denmark. It was definitely inspired by Panto. And quite fun. ❤
I visited pantos conducted by Frankfurt University students. They are Awesome. So much love, and origin. Did not know this is a seasonal thing. I will remember, a true reason to visit GB. 😊 Thank you!
Probably should have mentioned that traditionally the "Principal Boy" is played by a young woman. (Although that seems to be the case less often nowadays.)
Principal Boy, yes! You saved me the trouble. I saw a pantomime last week for the 1st time in decades. Aladin was played by a man. I assumed it was the company working with the cast they had. In this cross dressing, gender bending era it seems contrary that this part of the tradition is passing
@@jonthomas9708I was gonna say! It's also a long term problem that the drag king has been gradually pushed away from performance space as it has become fashionable to be afraid of and erase transmasculinity in a big way.
@@user-jn8wi3vf8q Thanks for the info. I'm not abreast of the tides in woke politics, even the long term ones. Who's afraid of transmasculinity? Women joining the glorious patriarchy? I would say certainly not the people outside the woke fraction
@@jonthomas9708 it is indeed them. Often people who don't want to seem too 'part of the woke faction ' as you say. They find trans masculine people and butches and drag kings embarrassing.
Both my parents are English (brummies) and I grew up in and around a British social club in SoCal. We had Panto every year since I was a child. We had the villain, which the audience would boo and hiss, and the dame who got the laughs, as well as the principal boy who was always played by a young lady. OH YES IT IS! OH NO IT ISN’T! Iykyk.
There used to be here in Canada, in Toronto, that would do a panto every Christmas season but the guy who ran it retired last year I think. This great theatre actor called Dan Chameroy always played the Dame character and kind of had a recurring character or persona showing up in the different stories named Plumbum.
Canadian here - although it's not quite as popular as in the UK, they definitely exist (referred to both as 'pantos' and 'pantomimes'). There are all the same elements as were mentiojed in the video, I think.
TIL what a Panto is. Never even heard or read of the word before. As a German with at least 8 years of learning English in school, and having read a fair amount of books from England, lots of them in the original language, and being used to watch English movies in original language, AND being a fan of Taskmaster... i am really disappointed i did not learn of the existence of Panto earlier! So thanks for the info :)
@@MoeruAcckkountu Oh. 1. Its no torture to watch in original language, it enhances the experience and lets me get more of the jokes for example. It also improves my hearing comprehension, which is helping when i have to talk to English speaking people in real life. 2. Yes, Germany has a big dubbing culture and for French or Italian movies for example i am certainly dependent on them and thankful for the existence. But the way most German voice actors are dubbing the English movies is not my cup of tea, it often feels weird to me, so if i can avoid it i do. 3. So some people would say the torture might be having to listen to the dub ;)
The US has one established pantomime company, the Lythgoe Family Panto, which does an annual professional show, typically featuring one adult TV or movie star and one child star, both with stage experience. They generally perform in the Los Angeles area, but have been known to have runs elsewhere. At the New Jersey Renaissance Festival and Kingdom (1989-2012), we used to use “He’s behind you!” in the Devil scene in “Punch and Judy”.
A cast of thousands? Sounds like a Cecil B. DeMille epic. And I'll bet the tickets cost less than a ticket to one of today's Hollywood disasters -- even in constant dollars.
I just read a wicked good article on the history of the panto before the 20th century - check out the victoria and albert museum's article "the story of pantomime" As to understanding panto, theyre very much like a sports game in that the best experience is being there. There's always local humour that'll go over your head but the fun atmosphere more than makes up for it! Be mindful though that there can be some very outdated depictions of non-white races. I'd definitely steer clear of any productions of Peter Pan, for example
Peter Pan is a bit different, in that it's a Proper Authored Play where the 1904 script is still in use, even if people do ad lib a bit. Most pantos are updated every year.
@@1981Marcus you say that, and of course the basic story is the same (well, mostly, a few years ago I went to one that was a sequel "the further adventures of Peter Pan: the return of Captain Hook" with well, yeah, Hook returning from the dead to seek his revenge and Wendy's modern-day great-granddaughter going to Neverland to help when Peter and Tink come for Wendy and discover that well, aging - though Wendy was supposed to still be alive, just very old. And this was a proper professional one produced by one of the big companies that does loads every year) but I have been to many, many pantos (a hundred or more, at least) done by various companies/theatres and amateur groups, in my life so far, including the consequent proportion of versions of Peter Pan, and they definitely haven't all used the same script verbatim (especially since some of them simply dispense with Tiger Lily etc), and I think it would in fact be fairly difficult to do that, or even just to use significant chunks of J.M. Barrie's original text, because of the difficulty of seamlessly inserting the songs and the other stock panto bits into that. Obviously there are iconic lines that you get across all of them, like "second star to the right and straight on til morning" but given the supporting characters can vary from production to production and there are usually people credited as writers in the programmes, they're definitely not all just using J.M. Barrie's text for the play Peter Pan, especially given it differs from the later book Peter and Wendy at points, and I get the impression they're often adapting the book, or a simplified version of its story, and not necessarily the play.
I'm actually planning on coming to the UK for the holidays next year and seeing a Panto is one of my main reasons for going! What other British Christmas stuff do you think North Americans should see?
i had my American friend over and we went to places in the north that are less well visited by American tourists, it depends on what you're interested in but perhaps look into places like Manchester, York, Whitby, or the Lake District. the Manchester People's History Museum is a must if you like this channel. Blackpool always has illuminations on around Christmas time. honestly though, my friend's favourite British things ended up being Greggs and Wetherspoons.
Book you tickets well in advance - pantomimes typically sell out every performance, and if you can see one in a Frank Matcham style theatre in a medium sized provincial town, all the better!
If you are in London, take the #139 bus from London Waterloo to Oxford Street by way of Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, Regent Street, and Oxford Circus. Take in all the Christmas lights from the upper level, where it's warm and dry. If you want to alight at Trafalgar Square and listen to carols, do so and reboard the bus. Or go ice skating at any of a dozen venues.
When she says broad comedy, yes, full of double entendres for the adults, over the heads of the kids. Principal Boy always played by a woman, also Principal Girl, Dame, main female character, played by a man. A lot of gender fluidity, which never worries anybody, because it's PANTO! Some great serious singing and dancing, some comic singing and dancing, fourth wall continually broken as characters appeal to the audience for answers and support and singalong. Wild costumes!
Wasn't till i was a parent I realized that the adults are getting way more out of this than the kids - courtesy of copious amounts of single-entendre.....
We always try and get tockets to tue last night of the panto - the actors are getting a little tired of having done the same script for so long, and as its the last night they often mess each other around (especially the professional comedians) and try to get others corpsing by going off script.
I get what Panto is. I've read several histories of the Pantos. What I don't get is why they are called Pantos. Pantomimes are silent, from the first 18th century Harlequin shows to today Pantos and there precursors have been full of witty talk and songs. So why a name derived from a silent performance?
Pantomime is one of the genres that involved as reaction to licensing laws which allowed only two legitimate theaters in London with proper spoken plays. Not having words or including music gets around these restrictions. So in the 18th century a number of types of performances evolved to skirt licensing.
If you want to go in for a deep dive of this to understand it more, take a look at Commedia Dell'arte which was an early form of this and theatre in general from Italy. It's full of these stock characters like the perfect couple, greedy old men and devious servants dialled up to 11. For panto, think Disney where the animators and colourist are on acid. So, Dumbo during "Pink Elephants"😄
It's quite odd to see the comment section from people across the world not knowing what Pantomime is, when panto's are such a staple in the UK of fun, daft, camp stage performance. You go along to the panto and get swept up in the crowd, clapping when the heroes on stage, hissing and booing when the villains on stage and just having a lot of fun. I enjoy the feeling of a panto. Though my hat goes off to any of the crew who are doing a panto because oh my goodness, it's so much hard work to make silly look seamless.
Why was the ad twice as long as the video? 🙄 Oh well, it's worth it if it supports creators. Thank you for being such an enthusiastic historian. I truly appreciate your work.
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For Americans - think the Carol Burnett Show fairy tales with special guest stars and Harvey Korman in drag, and then make it several hours long.
Mother Marcus is the perfect Dame!
That is a brilliant explanation! Or at least it is for now, but I fear me that soon the comedy variety show with a fractured fairy tale will soon be forgotten. But until then, long live the Elephant story.
@@marieroberts5664 and long live CZcams clips
As an American, I'm cackling at the "only an undisciplined nation" line 🤣
From one undisciplined nation to another, I applaud thee! 😝
That really is a badass line 😂
Ah, so that's panto. I always wondered because when I watched a UK soap in the past, a character would just vanish or go on a long holiday. People are like it's panto season for their absence like that explains it. Makes sense that if panto season is around the winter, it's a bit of fun and silliness while everything is cold and dreary out.
Totally, pantomime season these days goes from the beginning of December to mid January and they really are all round good fun thats safe for all ages when they're done well. If you ever get chance to go do it!
Unfortunately I can't get an international link but if you Google "bbc world pantomime" you should be able to see a short video on panto being taken to New York in 2018.
One of the British actors involved is a friend of my partner's, which is why the BBC has it as a story.
"Lots of audience participation." Look out he's behind you! 😆
No - the other side!
Oh no he's not!
We took a bunch of Cubs to panto and they outsang the cast with Rudolph the Red Nose reindeer (reindeer) who had a very shiny nose (like a lightbulb).
Oh yes he is
Oh no, he isn't.
Also, with so many schools never putting on plays or musicals themselves these days, the local amateur panto is a big starting point as kids for a lot of professional actors in the UK
I used the word "Pantomime" to my students in Austria and they assumed I meant actual mimes. Definitely not a thing that translates culturally.
As an American this is the first time I have ever heard the words "panto" and "pantomime" in my entire life
Until 1843 they were mimes, with much of the performances given largely in dance form, mime and visual comedy. The harlequin often played a significant role in this.
In the years leading up to 1843 theatres had to have a special patent to use spoken dialogue, and not many theatres had a patent. In 1843 the law changed and we started to see pantomimes with spoken word. And then they tended to all be spoken in rhyme, which you don’t see so much of now.
@@dagonmoore2117in the US pantomime referred to as an acting method (not to be confused with method acting).
When I lived in the UK, I was also confused, because the word pantomime refers to silent acting in Finnish. Finally, we saw a Panto in Durham Theatre 😊
Pantomime is from the Greek for "I mimic all".
It WAS miming until only a few centuries ago when it started to refer in English to what's more an adaptation of commedia dell'arte
Essentially the art changed forms but retained the original name
My 14 year old granddaughter is in panto in the SECC Glasgow this Christmas.
Oh no she's not. OH YES SHE IS 😁😁😁👍
SORRY. PROUD GRANDPA!!!
It's also the best defence against the bigoted clowns complaining about drag acts telling stories to kids.
Pantos are essentially one great big drag act telling stories to kids, in the campest way possible, and nobody goes around trying to shut them down, because everyone sees them for what they are: a bit of harmless fun that children, particularly, adore.
Huge difference in drag and the dame in panto. I go to drag shows and they are NOT suitable for children lol. Pantos are.
@@somniumisdreaming What a weird opinion...
Drag Acts do not HAVE to be unsuitable for children, and many of them, in fact, are very family-friendly with no references to anything sexual or whatever.
However, if the only drag acts you go to are made for the mature audience, I could see how you would come to the incorrect conclusion that all drag acts are unsuitable for kids.
But that's more of a "you" problem. In the same way that, while x-rated movies aren't suitable for children. It doesn't make ALL movies unsuitable for children. But if the only films you've ever exposed yourself to (oo-er!) are pornos... Do you see the problem?
I will admit, however, that I'm using hyperbole in calling a panto a drag act, although they do share extremely similar characteristics and always feature at least a male and often a female in drag.
@somniumisdreaming "drag acts aren't suitable for children except for the ones that are"
Genius revelation well done
@@GeeBarone ok they both have cross dressing, we've had that for hundreds of yrs. All drag acts are fabulous and we all love each other.
It's the ones that are sexual are the ones that are obviously not for kids
Forgot to mention that the local am dram pantos are sometimes complete chaos - one of our local troupes is literally called BAD and they get drunk as skunks, along with the audience.
There were a few pantos online during the pandemic that might still be there.
They’re ridiculous when you’re watching from home but in a theatre of kids hyped up on sugar (or adults on alcohol) they’re hilarious.
I always loved that there was zero effort for the men or the women to look like women or men (when playing opposite parts) you were just expected to believe it.
The origins of pantomime in commedia dell'arte (and court masques and restoration spectaculars) are fascinating to me! It's such a weird thing, a cultural staple that doesn't exist elsewhere (as far as I'm aware).
"This is NOT a pantomime!" "Oh, yes it is!"
Perhaps, but I believe you will find it's behind you
@@virgilxavier1 Oh no it isn't.
We're a strange country, people will get into screaming matches on tv about who's allowed to wear skirts or trousers then go to a panto where its old tradition for the men to be played by women and women to be played by men. Im not sure in all my years ive seen a male actor star as a male protagonist.
To be fair, the only panto stories I know that have a male protag are Peter Pan and Dick Whittington.
All that flying puts men off.
Weirdly the principal boy in most productions I have seen have been played by men. I have only seen one or two where this role was taken by a woman
I used to go to a Christmas pantomime every year as a child in Melbourne. We did all the audience participation, had the Panto Dame and the wicked moustache twirling villain and everything. I saw two pantos in London when I lived there in the 80s and 90s. Lulu was Peter Pan in one, I believe. So magical! So much fun! I don’t know if they still do them in Australia. If we do, they are not a big thing, sadly.
theres australian pantos?!? Please tell me if they’re still a thing- i’d love to see one
Don't feel bad, I'm in the US, and as far as I know, we don't have anything even vaguely similar.
Christmas is panto time here in Dublin. As a kid, I used to love them. They're still going strong and get good audiences.
@@smol-one It's a very British tradition
@@skateboardingjesus4006we have a couple of good options down here in Cork too. Love a good panto. 😊
Thank you for this! I've been hearing references to panto for years, and never seen anyone do a video on it, despite seeing lots of videos about differences between US and UK cultures.
There is a great deal more to the wonderful lore and traditions of pantomime than is shared here. If your interest is piqued I would encourage further exploration. However, watching one on a screen robs the experience of the vital live and participatory elements (for many Brits this is their first live theatre and, boy, what a way to start!) so if you get the chance, don't hesitate to go and see one (as well as the UK, Australia maintains the tradition. It is NOT sophisticated but you'll never have so much fun in a theatre.
I just love that ending quote, it's so funny for some reason
Edit: someone explained the reason
It's the simultaneous self-aggrandisement and self-effacement that is simply the British to a T
@@NonFatMead thank you!
“We are terrible, but at least we admit it” really is the most British thing I’ve ever heard 😂😂
@@OhSkyeLanta yes it really is
“Oh no it isn’t!”
I'm from Toronto and we had a Panto Christmas play put on every year until last season. I think they only stopped because the driving force behind them, Ross Petty, retired. I absolutely loved them as a kid.
In Vancouver there is a large Panto community. There are five or six theatres I can think of off the top of my head that do them, and I'm sure there are more in the Fraser Valley.
I was going to say the same thing! My dad directed the filming of one of his productions for TV sometime back in the 80's or 90's :P
Today my wife and I are going to see Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs at the Hippodrome Eastbourne. Oh Yes We Are! 🤣🎭👸✨
Oh no you aren’t…
Oh no you aren't!
@@bob_the_bomb4508 Oh yes they are!
Ah, panto. Something I've only ever seen cbeebies do, as I'm from the mainland, but it still holds a special place in the memory of my childhood none the less.
I used to love going to see pantomimes as a kid. they never had them in Aus so when we went to the uk and ireland to spend time with my dads family for christmas it was always a special treat for us kids.
The costumes for the ugly sisters (also played by dames) are always out of this world and they have like 10 costume changes.
Awesome video! Im opening an immersive exhibit on the history of panto at my gallery on Drury lane in a few weeks. I'm a longtime fan of your channel and would be honored if you dropped by.
Also often has a fair bit of audience participation with the yelling of “he’s behind you!!”
Just added Panto season to my bucket list.
Thanks. Not only theaters make all their money now but for one of my mates, who's a actor, it's the only time of the year he's employed as either a villain or a dame.
I knewnit was some type of theater, but had NO idea of the scope of these! Thank you for explaining them. That quote at the end was epic!!
This kinda stuff seems like the reason why _Flash Gordon_ was a hit in the UK and a flip in the US.
I was on a theater education tour as a kid in the 1980s right after Christmas, and was dragged to many of these. I'd been raised that you were SILENT during a theater production, so I was flabbergasted by the experience. When I studied in Oxford in 99-00, we went to the panto at...whatever that big theater is there, near the Ashmolean. Being in the know, and in my twenties, I had an absolute blast, but I think some of my friends were a little overwhelmed!
"Panto" is one of those things that we just NEVER seem to hear about in North America, like Eurovision.
No but that last line does really explain England so well 😭
Every time I hear panto it reminds me of Acto John Inman and Mother Goose .❤
Smae here - he was a true master of the craft!
Oh no it doesn't!
The logical thing to do here is to demonstrate a panto online as CZcams live-stream with audience participation via the comment section. Could this be done as a one-person operation? Very possibly not, but it's an interesting thought to conjure with.
About a year’s unpaid work. Sure.
👍👍 My US friends, I see it like the skits you might come up with at summer camp? Lots of silliness, all in good humour, and everyone kind of gets it because they're all pulling from a traditional form or a popular story?
But also with musical theatre, pop culture references, sometimes innuendo for the grown-ups depending on the theatre along with kid-friendly jokes, and certain audience participation in-jokes that every panto uses, such as the protagonist looking the other way when the baddie comes in, the audience shout "he's behind you" and they switch sides so the goodie thinks the audience are lying, or a call and response of "oh no it isn't"/"oh yes it is".
Its where Australian soap sctors can make a mint in their off season
Oh, so "panto" = "pantomime"?
Why didnt that occur to me?
When you hit a British word the puzzles you, always ask yourself: "could this be an abbreviation of a word I do know?" 😄
Is this part of the reason so many television shows have Christmas Specials that are like an hour or more long, as well? In the States shows will usually do a Christmas themed show but it will usually follow the time schedule and general outline of the rest of the show. But I’ve noticed that in UK TV there is usually a one-off, much longer, grander episode that is almost like it’s own thing as a Christmas Special.
Thanks for the explanation! Carrie Hope Fletcher has talked about doing Panto in some of her videos and I had no idea what she meant so this really helped
If you watched her videos from last year, she explains it pretty well.
I would also add if it's certain panto not just is there one person in drag almost all roles maybe reversed, so the leading man is a women dressed as a man.
Yes! I saw Lulu as Peter Pan in the 80s.
Young " male " lead played by woman...yes all this is panto.
In Peter Pan especially, the title character is often played by a woman.
Sadly Snow White in panto is also often some of the only work that short actors can get, Warwick Davis being the notable exception.
Ah! That's such an awesome concept!
Sounds like Rocky Horror. I wouldn't really know; never seen it or been to a performance, but that's what it sounds like
Same energy - very camp, very tongue-in-cheek, lots of 'flipping the script' (men played by women, women by men). For the live performances of RH, it's like that, but more - the audience are encouraged to interact and break the 4th wallin panto, it'sa collaborative experience.
Also, in most pantos I've been to, it's traditional to throw Wagon Wheels (round chocolate 'candy bars') into the audience for the kids.
I love the remark at the ends. It just reminds me how I am part of a country that thought it was a good idea to make an aircraft carrier out of frozen wood (project Habakkuk)!
Pykrete is very strong for the materials.
It's less crazy' compared to Messi other things military did during that time.
I mean... The Mosquito was one of the most successful fighter bombers of the 2nd wold war, and that was built almost entirely out of plywood and balsa.
Never underestimate the terrifying majesty of a bunch of Britons in a shed with limited resources. 🤣
@@peterclarke7240 To quote New Zealand's first Nobel laureate: we didn't have any money, so we had to think
@@stephenlitten1789 Spot on.
Necessity is the mother of invention, and scarcity is the mother of innovation.
Basically, don't put someone's back up against a wall if you don't want them to headbutt you and knee you in the knackers.🤣
This is why I don't get the imported culture war outrage over drag queen story hour. British parents have been taking their children to see what is essentially a drag show every Christmas for as long as anyone can remember.
Yrep. The leading hero/man is a girl, who gets the girl, and the Dame often gets her guy too
But it's non-sexual in a panto and many other shows (like Monty Python, the Two Ronnie's, and Benny Hill, as examples).
@@Arkelk2010 have you ever even been to a panto? It's full of innuendo, perhaps it went over your head. Drag queens reading children's books to children is not sexual.
@@Arkelk2010 The banter in pantos is full of double entendres, especially between the Dame and the villain
Republicans wanted a Bogeyman after segregation, gay and now abortion. Republicans don't give a damn. They just want something to scare their moronic bases.
Don't for a second think that Republicans care about female safety. They always attack the SA victims, sl** shaming them. Heck Gym Jordan and Matt Graetz is still in the office.
They want to bring back traditional gender roles. They attack any women who don't conform to it Calling them trans. They are still "convinced" Former first party, Michelle Obama is a man.
My Nana was from England and worked for the local British theater troupe when I was a kid. So I grew up with pantos. Those are some of my most treasured childhood memories! ❤️
This... is exactly the inspiration that I needed for my writing.
Now I absolutely MUST see a panto in the UK. Bring me my bucket list, my good man. 😊
Deffo come along! It's the true (pre-Victorian, chaotic, drunken) spirit of Christmas! 😊
Was taken to panto on a visit to Manchester with my family. The producers put in a joke about our American background. I had NO IDEA what we were about to see. 25 years later, the family still sings “There’s a worm at the bottom of the garden….” at the mention of panto.
The pride in her eyes at the end!
At some point in the 1980’s spirited actors started a ‘crazy Christmas cabaret’ in Copenhagen Denmark. It was definitely inspired by Panto. And quite fun.
❤
As an American, I love this idea! How fun!
I visited pantos conducted by Frankfurt University students. They are Awesome. So much love, and origin. Did not know this is a seasonal thing. I will remember, a true reason to visit GB. 😊 Thank you!
Probably should have mentioned that traditionally the "Principal Boy" is played by a young woman. (Although that seems to be the case less often nowadays.)
Principal Boy, yes! You saved me the trouble. I saw a pantomime last week for the 1st time in decades. Aladin was played by a man. I assumed it was the company working with the cast they had. In this cross dressing, gender bending era it seems contrary that this part of the tradition is passing
@@jonthomas9708I was gonna say! It's also a long term problem that the drag king has been gradually pushed away from performance space as it has become fashionable to be afraid of and erase transmasculinity in a big way.
@@user-jn8wi3vf8q Thanks for the info. I'm not abreast of the tides in woke politics, even the long term ones. Who's afraid of transmasculinity? Women joining the glorious patriarchy? I would say certainly not the people outside the woke fraction
@@jonthomas9708 it is indeed them. Often people who don't want to seem too 'part of the woke faction ' as you say. They find trans masculine people and butches and drag kings embarrassing.
@@jonthomas9708 I don't think Aladdin flies does he?
I will forever be grateful to Monty Python for teaching this SoCal kid that you are to answer back when Puss in Boots says something!
Both my parents are English (brummies) and I grew up in and around a British social club in SoCal. We had Panto every year since I was a child. We had the villain, which the audience would boo and hiss, and the dame who got the laughs, as well as the principal boy who was always played by a young lady. OH YES IT IS! OH NO IT ISN’T! Iykyk.
YES! Bring panto to the US! 😊
Seems like a natural extension of Commedia Del Arte
I feel like our local Die Hard musical tradition is a Seattle version of Panto.
There used to be here in Canada, in Toronto, that would do a panto every Christmas season but the guy who ran it retired last year I think. This great theatre actor called Dan Chameroy always played the Dame character and kind of had a recurring character or persona showing up in the different stories named Plumbum.
Canadian here - although it's not quite as popular as in the UK, they definitely exist (referred to both as 'pantos' and 'pantomimes'). There are all the same elements as were mentiojed in the video, I think.
I grew up with family in the North East, so I remember many a 90's Christmas watching Ant and Dec perform in panto!
Oh, I think we have those in Canada! Only we don't call them pantos, we call them Ross Petty Productions because he's the only one who does them.
Actually no, he was just the largest. There are a lot of Regional Theatres that do them as well.
TIL what a Panto is. Never even heard or read of the word before.
As a German with at least 8 years of learning English in school, and having read a fair amount of books from England, lots of them in the original language, and being used to watch English movies in original language, AND being a fan of Taskmaster... i am really disappointed i did not learn of the existence of Panto earlier!
So thanks for the info :)
Why were you torturing yourself? Iirc Most movie releasing in Germany has a German dub
@@MoeruAcckkountu Oh.
1. Its no torture to watch in original language, it enhances the experience and lets me get more of the jokes for example.
It also improves my hearing comprehension, which is helping when i have to talk to English speaking people in real life.
2. Yes, Germany has a big dubbing culture and for French or Italian movies for example i am certainly dependent on them and thankful for the existence.
But the way most German voice actors are dubbing the English movies is not my cup of tea, it often feels weird to me, so if i can avoid it i do.
3. So some people would say the torture might be having to listen to the dub ;)
The Panto is the small hatchback that Jesus drives in GTA V, silly!
I'd heard 'panto' referenced in British television, but I could never figure out what in the world they were talking about. Finally, an EXPLANATION.
The US has one established pantomime company, the Lythgoe Family Panto, which does an annual professional show, typically featuring one adult TV or movie star and one child star, both with stage experience. They generally perform in the Los Angeles area, but have been known to have runs elsewhere.
At the New Jersey Renaissance Festival and Kingdom (1989-2012), we used to use “He’s behind you!” in the Devil scene in “Punch and Judy”.
A cast of thousands? Sounds like a Cecil B. DeMille epic. And I'll bet the tickets cost less than a ticket to one of today's Hollywood disasters -- even in constant dollars.
I desperately want to see what a 2000 cast panto looks like. It sounds chaotic in the best way.
I just read a wicked good article on the history of the panto before the 20th century - check out the victoria and albert museum's article "the story of pantomime"
As to understanding panto, theyre very much like a sports game in that the best experience is being there. There's always local humour that'll go over your head but the fun atmosphere more than makes up for it!
Be mindful though that there can be some very outdated depictions of non-white races. I'd definitely steer clear of any productions of Peter Pan, for example
Peter Pan is a bit different, in that it's a Proper Authored Play where the 1904 script is still in use, even if people do ad lib a bit. Most pantos are updated every year.
@@1981Marcus you say that, and of course the basic story is the same (well, mostly, a few years ago I went to one that was a sequel "the further adventures of Peter Pan: the return of Captain Hook" with well, yeah, Hook returning from the dead to seek his revenge and Wendy's modern-day great-granddaughter going to Neverland to help when Peter and Tink come for Wendy and discover that well, aging - though Wendy was supposed to still be alive, just very old. And this was a proper professional one produced by one of the big companies that does loads every year) but I have been to many, many pantos (a hundred or more, at least) done by various companies/theatres and amateur groups, in my life so far, including the consequent proportion of versions of Peter Pan, and they definitely haven't all used the same script verbatim (especially since some of them simply dispense with Tiger Lily etc), and I think it would in fact be fairly difficult to do that, or even just to use significant chunks of J.M. Barrie's original text, because of the difficulty of seamlessly inserting the songs and the other stock panto bits into that. Obviously there are iconic lines that you get across all of them, like "second star to the right and straight on til morning" but given the supporting characters can vary from production to production and there are usually people credited as writers in the programmes, they're definitely not all just using J.M. Barrie's text for the play Peter Pan, especially given it differs from the later book Peter and Wendy at points, and I get the impression they're often adapting the book, or a simplified version of its story, and not necessarily the play.
Musical revues like Beach Blanket Babylon seem descended from this theatre ancestor, panto.
Five hours! Or half a Ken Dodd show.
More like a third!
I'm actually planning on coming to the UK for the holidays next year and seeing a Panto is one of my main reasons for going!
What other British Christmas stuff do you think North Americans should see?
i had my American friend over and we went to places in the north that are less well visited by American tourists, it depends on what you're interested in but perhaps look into places like Manchester, York, Whitby, or the Lake District. the Manchester People's History Museum is a must if you like this channel.
Blackpool always has illuminations on around Christmas time. honestly though, my friend's favourite British things ended up being Greggs and Wetherspoons.
Book you tickets well in advance - pantomimes typically sell out every performance, and if you can see one in a Frank Matcham style theatre in a medium sized provincial town, all the better!
@3katfox The Great Escape on the telly. One channel usually shows it.
If you are in London, take the #139 bus from London Waterloo to Oxford Street by way of Trafalgar Square, Piccadilly Circus, Regent Street, and Oxford Circus. Take in all the Christmas lights from the upper level, where it's warm and dry. If you want to alight at Trafalgar Square and listen to carols, do so and reboard the bus.
Or go ice skating at any of a dozen venues.
@ImperialistRunningDo
Oh my gosh that sounds magical! Thank you for the advice!
Always loved the panto - such ribbald fun. Performed both by professional as well as amateur threatical groups.
I'm going to see one today!!!!!!! I think it's Jack and the Beanstalk!!
Did you know that it's based on Norse mythology?
No? Thats really cool!
"Oh No You're Not!" 👍😄
When she says broad comedy, yes, full of double entendres for the adults, over the heads of the kids. Principal Boy always played by a woman, also Principal Girl, Dame, main female character, played by a man. A lot of gender fluidity, which never worries anybody, because it's PANTO!
Some great serious singing and dancing, some comic singing and dancing, fourth wall continually broken as characters appeal to the audience for answers and support and singalong. Wild costumes!
And entirely likely a quadruped animal such as a horse or cow played by 2 people in a costume
Wasn't till i was a parent I realized that the adults are getting way more out of this than the kids - courtesy of copious amounts of single-entendre.....
I bloody love panto. So glad you explained it.... couldn't have said it myself.
When I study abroad in England all my theater classmates were shocked I didn’t know what Panto was
We always try and get tockets to tue last night of the panto - the actors are getting a little tired of having done the same script for so long, and as its the last night they often mess each other around (especially the professional comedians) and try to get others corpsing by going off script.
Drag is a British tradition, dangit!
I never heard of this, but now I want to see one!
I was in my local theatre’s panto this year, the youngest cast member (12) and I was the fairy, the panto was the elves and the shoemaker
I get what Panto is. I've read several histories of the Pantos. What I don't get is why they are called Pantos. Pantomimes are silent, from the first 18th century Harlequin shows to today Pantos and there precursors have been full of witty talk and songs. So why a name derived from a silent performance?
Pantomime is one of the genres that involved as reaction to licensing laws which allowed only two legitimate theaters in London with proper spoken plays. Not having words or including music gets around these restrictions. So in the 18th century a number of types of performances evolved to skirt licensing.
okay,... I need Panto season for the US. Ours will naturally involve guns but ...'tis the season, I don't need a reason.
I love that quote at the end!
If you want to go in for a deep dive of this to understand it more, take a look at Commedia Dell'arte which was an early form of this and theatre in general from Italy. It's full of these stock characters like the perfect couple, greedy old men and devious servants dialled up to 11. For panto, think Disney where the animators and colourist are on acid. So, Dumbo during "Pink Elephants"😄
There is a Christmas pantomime tradition in Jamaica too.
Canada has Panto season as well. Unfortunately our largest Panto producer Ross Petty retired last year so no Wintergarden Panto this year.😢
5 hours? I couldn't even handle 1hr 53m movie due to my bladder
It's quite odd to see the comment section from people across the world not knowing what Pantomime is, when panto's are such a staple in the UK of fun, daft, camp stage performance. You go along to the panto and get swept up in the crowd, clapping when the heroes on stage, hissing and booing when the villains on stage and just having a lot of fun.
I enjoy the feeling of a panto. Though my hat goes off to any of the crew who are doing a panto because oh my goodness, it's so much hard work to make silly look seamless.
In America, a panto is how we provide power to streetcars.
At least this is one thing Victorian Britain didn't steal from another culture.
Thank you for this summary, but can you please fix the audio-video desync in the future long shorts ?.. 😅
These sound like a lot of fun
This reminds me of the fringe festivals here in Edmonton, Canada.. I know Edinburgh has a big one. Any correlation?
Nope. Completely different things.
About twenty seconds in, just over your right shoulder... Is that, erm - is that a chuckle brother with Morrissey?
A melodrama ON STEROIDS
I have never seen a panto yet but have heard some of the tales.
Imagine Shakespearean plays but instead of a drunken adult audience an audience of wide eyed imaginative children. 😆
The audio lag is so bad on these TiKTok transfers that they look dubbed from Hungarian.
@JDraper Do you often wear a replica of the Cheapside Hoard Salamander Brooch?
Why was the ad twice as long as the video? 🙄 Oh well, it's worth it if it supports creators. Thank you for being such an enthusiastic historian. I truly appreciate your work.
How fun! This sounds great
Unpopular opinion: These videos should be called "Long story shorts"