Hethersett Pantomime
Hethersett Pantomime began in 1970 in the old church hall in Henstead Road and there have subsequently been 51 pantos in an unbroken run.
The pantomime moved to the new village.
The pantomime moved to the new village hall in Back Lane in 1996. Over the years productions have raised over £100,000 for various organisations and local charities.
The first 40 shows were written and produced by Duncan Pigg. In 2010 Lloyd Parfitt took over. The full list of productions is as follows.
1970 Sleeping Beauty
1971 Dick Whittington
1972 Jack and the Beanstalk
1973 Aladdin
1974 Beauty and the Beast
1975 Cinderella
1976 Red Riding Hood
1977 Sleeping Beauty
1978 Dick Whittington
1979 Babes in the Wood
1980 Jack and the Beanstalk
1981 Aladdin
1982 Mother Goose
1983 Sinbad the Sailor
1984 Cinderella
1985 Robin Hood
1986 Beauty and the Beast
1987 Sleeping Beauty
1988 Dick Whittington
1989 Snow White
1990 Aladdin
1991 Cinderella
1992 Jack and the Beanstalk
1993 Babes in the Wood
1994 Dick Whittington
1995 Sleeping Beauty
1996 Cinderella
1997 Aladdin
1998 Mother Goose
1999 Jack and the Beanstalk
2000 Dick Whittington
2001 Robin Hood
2002 Sinbad the Sailor
2003 Aladdin
2004 Sleeping Beauty
2005 Cinderella
2006 Dick Whittington
2007 Jack and the Beanstalk
2008 Mother Goose
2009 Aladdin and His Ruby Lamp
2010 Robin Hood & His Merry Men
2011 Snow White
2012 Dick Whittington
2013 Cinderella
2014 Beauty and the Beast
2015 Treasure Island
2016 Jack and the Beanstalk
2017 Sleeping Beauty
2018 Robinson Crusoe
2019 Cinderella '50th'
2020 The Three Musketeers
The pantomime has an interesting beginning. On January 20th, 1966. almost 50 handicapped people from the Forehoe and Henstead District were guests at a party given by Mrs Hagg to celebrate her birthday.
Bingo and games were enjoyed and guests were entertained by "a most amusing pantomime" which subsequently sparked the idea of a regular village panto.
For much of its time the pantomime has been written and produced by Mrs Hagg's son Duncan Pigg who takes up the story.
"The panto was supported by my mother. She was aware of a committee in the Forehoe and Henstead District Council which helped the handicapped. January 17th was her birthday and she wanted to give them a party. We played party games and sung to them. They preferred to listen and watch rather than join in. We got a bit more ambitious and put on an ad lib panto where the cast did the words. One or two people said 'why don't you put on a performance for the public?"
And that's what they did in 1970.
Below is an interview undertaken by Peter Steward with Duncan Pigg and Sarah Wright in 2007.
When Duncan Pigg wrote his first pantomime in 1970 he never dreamed that he would still be coming up with ideas and scripts almost four decades later.
Duncan's 38th Hethersett Pantomime will be performed in the village hall from January 20th to 27th. There will be nine performances of Jack and the Beanstalk. Duncan admits that his enthusiasm has never waned over the years.
"I never seem to run out of ideas. I have a whole year to think about things and there's always current trends that can be included. I start thinking about the panto in the summer and we have a pre-production meeting in September and kick around ideas from there," he said.
Over the years the number of people involved in the productions has more than doubled. The 1970 version of Sleeping Beauty involved 33 people. This year over 70 will be involved either on stage or off.
It will also mark a landmark for producer Sarah Wright who will be in charge of her 10th panto. The Wright/Pigg partnership continues to flourish as the productions become much more hit-tech with computer graphics helping to plan scenery this year.
"When we started we had four pieces of 8 by 4 hardboard which we switched around. Now thanks to grants from South Norfolk District Council and the village hall management committee we have automatic back drops and superb scenery thanks to the skill of Colin Wilson," Duncan said.
Over the years the panto has raised almost £50,000 for various charities. Last year's charities to benefit included Musical Keys, St Matthew's House, Friends of Woodside First School, Hethersett Middle School PTA, Hethersett Parish Church, Hethersett Methodist Church and Wymondham Roman Catholic Church.
This year both the script and scenery contain local and topical references and there will be one or two surprises along the way.
Sarah explained that as producer one of her major satisfactions is seeing members of the cast develop:
"We see people with potential and try and bring them on. We have a huge range of age groups taking part and they mix so well together. We have a lovely group of children. It is great that youngsters can go on stage and do something for the community," Sarah said.
So what does pantomime mean to Duncan and Sarah:
"I love the variety of being able to use different music. I have a wide taste in music and our pantos are very musical," Duncan said. Indeed the first ever pantomime was referred to as "A musical fairy tale."
"I still find it great fun and it is wonderful that the teenagers still accept me at the age of 80," Duncan said.
"We really don't have any prima donnas," Sarah added.
The success of Hethersett's annual pantomime is reflected in the fact that people attend from all over Norfolk as well as from the north of England and the London area. Two former Hethersett residents have also travelled from their home in Turkey.
If you ask Duncan and Sarah what makes a good pantomime, they are very swift to put together a list of ingredients which include the following:
Good music
Originality
A good storyline
Entertainment and above all
A sense of fun.
Indeed panto gives the audience the chance to forget the stressed and strains of modern life for a few hours - it is pure escapism.
Duncan is already thinking about pantomime 39 in 2008.
"The group is in such great shape that they could carry on without me," he added.
I think that Duncan is just being too modest!
The pantomime moved to the new village.
The pantomime moved to the new village hall in Back Lane in 1996. Over the years productions have raised over £100,000 for various organisations and local charities.
The first 40 shows were written and produced by Duncan Pigg. In 2010 Lloyd Parfitt took over. The full list of productions is as follows.
1970 Sleeping Beauty
1971 Dick Whittington
1972 Jack and the Beanstalk
1973 Aladdin
1974 Beauty and the Beast
1975 Cinderella
1976 Red Riding Hood
1977 Sleeping Beauty
1978 Dick Whittington
1979 Babes in the Wood
1980 Jack and the Beanstalk
1981 Aladdin
1982 Mother Goose
1983 Sinbad the Sailor
1984 Cinderella
1985 Robin Hood
1986 Beauty and the Beast
1987 Sleeping Beauty
1988 Dick Whittington
1989 Snow White
1990 Aladdin
1991 Cinderella
1992 Jack and the Beanstalk
1993 Babes in the Wood
1994 Dick Whittington
1995 Sleeping Beauty
1996 Cinderella
1997 Aladdin
1998 Mother Goose
1999 Jack and the Beanstalk
2000 Dick Whittington
2001 Robin Hood
2002 Sinbad the Sailor
2003 Aladdin
2004 Sleeping Beauty
2005 Cinderella
2006 Dick Whittington
2007 Jack and the Beanstalk
2008 Mother Goose
2009 Aladdin and His Ruby Lamp
2010 Robin Hood & His Merry Men
2011 Snow White
2012 Dick Whittington
2013 Cinderella
2014 Beauty and the Beast
2015 Treasure Island
2016 Jack and the Beanstalk
2017 Sleeping Beauty
2018 Robinson Crusoe
2019 Cinderella '50th'
2020 The Three Musketeers
The pantomime has an interesting beginning. On January 20th, 1966. almost 50 handicapped people from the Forehoe and Henstead District were guests at a party given by Mrs Hagg to celebrate her birthday.
Bingo and games were enjoyed and guests were entertained by "a most amusing pantomime" which subsequently sparked the idea of a regular village panto.
For much of its time the pantomime has been written and produced by Mrs Hagg's son Duncan Pigg who takes up the story.
"The panto was supported by my mother. She was aware of a committee in the Forehoe and Henstead District Council which helped the handicapped. January 17th was her birthday and she wanted to give them a party. We played party games and sung to them. They preferred to listen and watch rather than join in. We got a bit more ambitious and put on an ad lib panto where the cast did the words. One or two people said 'why don't you put on a performance for the public?"
And that's what they did in 1970.
Below is an interview undertaken by Peter Steward with Duncan Pigg and Sarah Wright in 2007.
When Duncan Pigg wrote his first pantomime in 1970 he never dreamed that he would still be coming up with ideas and scripts almost four decades later.
Duncan's 38th Hethersett Pantomime will be performed in the village hall from January 20th to 27th. There will be nine performances of Jack and the Beanstalk. Duncan admits that his enthusiasm has never waned over the years.
"I never seem to run out of ideas. I have a whole year to think about things and there's always current trends that can be included. I start thinking about the panto in the summer and we have a pre-production meeting in September and kick around ideas from there," he said.
Over the years the number of people involved in the productions has more than doubled. The 1970 version of Sleeping Beauty involved 33 people. This year over 70 will be involved either on stage or off.
It will also mark a landmark for producer Sarah Wright who will be in charge of her 10th panto. The Wright/Pigg partnership continues to flourish as the productions become much more hit-tech with computer graphics helping to plan scenery this year.
"When we started we had four pieces of 8 by 4 hardboard which we switched around. Now thanks to grants from South Norfolk District Council and the village hall management committee we have automatic back drops and superb scenery thanks to the skill of Colin Wilson," Duncan said.
Over the years the panto has raised almost £50,000 for various charities. Last year's charities to benefit included Musical Keys, St Matthew's House, Friends of Woodside First School, Hethersett Middle School PTA, Hethersett Parish Church, Hethersett Methodist Church and Wymondham Roman Catholic Church.
This year both the script and scenery contain local and topical references and there will be one or two surprises along the way.
Sarah explained that as producer one of her major satisfactions is seeing members of the cast develop:
"We see people with potential and try and bring them on. We have a huge range of age groups taking part and they mix so well together. We have a lovely group of children. It is great that youngsters can go on stage and do something for the community," Sarah said.
So what does pantomime mean to Duncan and Sarah:
"I love the variety of being able to use different music. I have a wide taste in music and our pantos are very musical," Duncan said. Indeed the first ever pantomime was referred to as "A musical fairy tale."
"I still find it great fun and it is wonderful that the teenagers still accept me at the age of 80," Duncan said.
"We really don't have any prima donnas," Sarah added.
The success of Hethersett's annual pantomime is reflected in the fact that people attend from all over Norfolk as well as from the north of England and the London area. Two former Hethersett residents have also travelled from their home in Turkey.
If you ask Duncan and Sarah what makes a good pantomime, they are very swift to put together a list of ingredients which include the following:
Good music
Originality
A good storyline
Entertainment and above all
A sense of fun.
Indeed panto gives the audience the chance to forget the stressed and strains of modern life for a few hours - it is pure escapism.
Duncan is already thinking about pantomime 39 in 2008.
"The group is in such great shape that they could carry on without me," he added.
I think that Duncan is just being too modest!