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Aladdin

"The kids shouted themselves hoarse... panto at his best!" Kings Lynn Mercury

"By Edinburgh's panto king. Modern but traditional....it's one enormous joke with an exciting plot which fully involves the children" Glasgow Herald

Aladdin is a pantomime for 13 principals (5 female, 5 male, 3 either) with chorus and dancers.

There are three full-sets and three front tab scenes which are designed to blend simply into each other. Aladdin can easily be adapted for a large or small scale production as facilities allow.

This working script includes comprehensive production notes, lighting plot, effects plot, properties list and suggestions for musical numbers.

Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves

" It is up-to-date, funny, imaginative, clear and uncomplicated" Evening news

In old Baghdad, nothing is quite what it seems.... even the song-sheet needs deciphering.
However 'The Tap Dance of the Seven Veils' is worth waiting for and all is revealed in the end.

13 principals: 5 male , 4 female, 4 either plus a camel (some doubling up is possible)

Beauty and the Beast

ATTENTION

This is not a Disney rip-off
Pantomime's not animation
Real performers are alive
Not cartoon animations

David Swan's biggest production has 13 principals (4 males, 6 females, 3 either) There are a set of twins (played by one male principal and the Enchanted Castle which is a male voice over (not included in above)

The Sleeping Beauty

"First class entertainment. A show with everything....spectacle, humour and audience
participation" Stratford-Upon-Avon Herald

The Sleeping Beauty is aimed at an audience of children. It is fast-paced with many verbal and visual gags and is designed to encourage the maximum audience participation. The plot is consistent, easily understood and contains all the elements of the traditional fairytale with some novel additions to keep the excitement going to the end.
13 principals 7 female, 5 male, 1 either

Frankenstein

"Inspired Mayhem" The Glasgow Herald

"A vibrant spectacle" The List

This is an hilarious, action packed entertainment for children of all ages and follows the great pantomime tradition. It is suitable for large or small-scale productions and uses one basic set, adapted simply for the three full-stage scenes. All the principal characters (9 female, 5 male, 2 either) are given a wide scope for comedy.

This working script includes comprehensive production notes, lighting plot, effects plot,
properties list and suggestions for music and dance numbers

Pinocchio

Safety First
We teach our children road-safety, how to swim, not to play with matches and so on because they are bound to encounter dangerous situations on their own and need to know what to do. This new version of "Pinocchio" promotes the most important safety lesson of all: what to do when strangers, and even people they know, try to harm them.

Foreword

Unfortunately, we cannot be with our children every minute of the day and so guarantee their complete safety. Sooner or later they will encounter dangerous situations on their own and need to know how to keep themselves safe. We may warn them, for example, of the dangers of water ... of strong currents that can pull them under a river or drag them out to sea. But a warning alone is not enough: we also teach our children to swim! The best protected child is the one who not only understands the risks but knows how to deal with them.

In this version of "Pinocchio" I am promoting the most important safety lesson of all. Collodi's original story, published in 1883, preached the "virtue" of unquestioning obedience to adults and the dire consequences of disobedience. This message is inappropriate for a modern audience of children. Whilst the main purpose of this script is to entertain, it's underlying theme is very serious... to show children what to do when strangers, and even people they know, try to harm them.

Pantomime is the only theatrical form in which the audience actively, and willingly, take part. Besides providing examples of dangerous situations and the strategies for dealing with them, "Pinocchio" also gives children the unique opportunity of putting "good sense defence" into practice by participating in the show and interacting with all the characters onstage, both good and bad.

I am indebted to Michele Elliot of "Kidscape" for her valuable help and advice in the production of this script.

David Swan November, 1989

14 Principals: 6 female, 4 male and 4 male/female

Cinderella

"The script bristles along and every detail of the show is right. It is the ingenuity of the writing which sets it apart from other pantos...all the new ideas are blended in with the original with great assurance. Hilarious! Stage

12 principals 5 female 4 male 3 either

This new version of Cinderella is highly original yet retains all the traditional elements.
The plot is well structured and logical with some wonderfully novel twists. The characters are strongly defined, offering great scope to all the performers. The staging is simple and effective, requiring no multiple scene changes, expensive effects, elaborate costumes or complicated props. But most importantly, this script is aimed squarely at an audience of children, engaging their help from the beginning and keeping them laughing and excited till the end.