Writing a Panto – Part One – Part Two – Part Three

This is all about gags, gags, gags. Audiences come to a pantomime to laugh. Verbal and visual, they don’t mind which. And they don’t mind old gags. This is proved by the simple fact that they return year after year and laugh at the same gags.

For the writer, there are many sources of jokes. You can pick up books of jokes at a book shop. If you are wired in, try the Internet. Simply select a search engine (Google is one of the best) and enter “jokes” or “pantomime jokes”. You will be amazed by what comes up. All categories of jokes: knock knock jokes, doctor doctor jokes, waiter jokes, the list is endless.

Having assembled a list, you must arrange them in themes, i.e. according to the situation or scene you happen to be writing. As you write your dialogue, try to give all your characters a fair crack of the whip, including fairies and principal boys and girls. Believe me, they will appreciate it. However, the bulk of the gags must go to your principal comedians, especially the dame and comic duos.

In pantomime of course, whole scenes are inserted which are not strictly relevant to the plot. Slapstick remains the essence of the genre. Wallpapering the parlour, kitchen and ghost scenes galore – what audience hasn’t roared with laughter at them? An excellent source of sketches and comedy routines is “The Pantomime Book” by Paul Harris, published by Peter Owen. If you’re going to use this source, my advice is – don’t overdo it. Remember that you are creating something that is supposed to be unique, and not merely a collection of rehashed routines. You must above all inject a note of originality.

One or two other things matter.

First, music. Choose your songs carefully. You may of course elect to omit a recommended list of songs, but most societies appreciate it. There is a vast amount of suitable music, ranging from the fifties to the present day. And even before the fifties. There are classic numbers available from the thirties, and I have used Edwardian and even Victorian music-hall songs in “Dick Whittington”.

Songs from the shows go down well, from Rodgers and Hammerstein to Lloyd Webber. Songs from “Annie” and “Oliver” were very popular in the nineties. And don’t forget pop. Even if Queen or S Club Seven is not to your taste, your audience, most of whom are teen and pre-teen, will lap it up! Rock ‘n Roll music remains perennially popular.

Secondly, don’t forget your chorus, that bunch of much undervalued stalwarts without whom you could not have a panto. Try to keep them involved in the action, and don’t have them standing around singing the odd song just for the sake of it. It requires great skill on the part of the playwright to integrate a chorus into the action, but it is very worthwhile.

To sum up

A pantomime is a blend of many things, but essentially of three – plot, characterisation and humour. The challenge for the playwright is to drive his/her characters from the beginning to the end of the plot in a humour-filled environment. Add spectacle, costumes and special effects, and you have what the customer has paid to see – the perfect panto.

Writing a Panto – Part One – Part Two – Part Three