Writer and sometime pantomime dame, Neil John Gibson, has come up with an idea to bring some panto fun to YouTube this Christmas. Inspired by his recorded Lockdown Diaries for the Howden Park Centre Facebook, when he thought about his fellow thespians who’d be out of work this Festive season, Gibson has put together a show entitled The Real Dames of Pantoland (TRDOP).
Written and directed by Gibson, The Real Dames Pantoland will feature some of Scotland’s best and brightest from the Scottish pantomime scene together for a one off 45 minute episode that will be streaming free across Scotland on YouTube from 21st December 2020.
The Real Dames Pantoland, that’s been funded by Creative Scotland, may have a lockdown theme, with Mother Goose’s planned Christmas Dinner being cancelled because of Covid and other characters coming to the rescue, but the team wants to create a show that’s fun and accessible folks across Scotland.
Gibson says “My dream is that families are sitting round on Christmas day watching The Real Dames just like they would get together to go to the theatre to see a Panto. Panto was the only time I entered a theatre when I was wee and it really saddens me that 2020 will be the first year where this can’t be possible. Hopefully, this can be the bridge until theatres are back bigger and better with their 2021 offering.”
One of the Dames from the show, Carina V Ross, will announce the launch on their Facebook page, The Real Dames of Pantoland and on their Twitter and Instagram @DamesReal. The full cast will be announced in the coming weeks with snippets from the characters starting to appear on their social media throughout November and December.
As Gibson says “…Lock up yer Das, The Real Dames of Pantoland are in town!”
Irene Brown
Radio Summerhall Arts 