What Does a Panto Company Do Throughout the Year - October
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What Does a Panto Company Do Throughout the Year - October
Continuing our blog of what a pantomime company does ‘for the rest of the year’ here is a brief overview of what the Imagine team have been up to during October.
The clocks have changed, trick or treaters have finished knocking on doors and bonfire night is just around the corner. This can mean only one thing – panto season is hitting full swing!
The first of Imagine’s 19 pantomimes, Cinderella at the Belgrade Theatre in Coventry, have started their rehearsals this week and with less than two weeks until the next few shows in the schedule begin rehearsals it really is all systems go at Imagine HQ.
October has seen the staff at the local post offices getting very busy with the Imagine Team beginning to drop off scripts to be posted out to the cast and crew for those pantomimes going into rehearsal the earliest.
The wardrobe team have been working hard on some final makes for this panto season and they really have been creating some beautiful costumes. In addition they have their first few shows packed and ready to leave the building. Sewing kits, haberdashery boxes and sewing machines have been taking over the meeting room as they are labelled up and allocated to each show and we have had our final dame costume fitting of the season.
Many of the license applications for more than 400 Junior Ensemble members have been submitted to councils across the UK. This is a massive undertaking for Beth who heads up the child licensing and is the culmination of the last few months of auditions which have seen the team travel the length and breadth of the UK.
Some of the team took a trip down to a studio in London to record the voice overs for the giants and the wicked stepmothers for the season. And with all the music for the pantomimes now finalised Callum has been arranging to get the backing vocals recorded for all of shows during the first week of November.
The marketing team are currently planning for light switch ons and press nights as well working on the ongoing campaigns which are now well under way. It is also that time when copy for programmes is almost due so the chase for those final headshots and biogs is happening.
The ops and stores teams are doing their final preparations for shows that are due to start going out in the next few weeks. Company manager boxes are packed, the extensive paperwork is being finalised, the last few props are being created and final touches to the sets are being made. It will not be long before that first truck of the season makes an appearance!
And, believe it or not, titles, schedules and plans for next year are already well under way!
If you are interested in a further look behind the scenes check out the fortnightly Just Imagine Podcast which as well as interviews with the members of the Imagine HQ team includes guest interviews from the wide range of people we work with each year.
