February 2024

Show Report
It was a great pleasure to join you again for your annual pantomime and to experience the wonderful family and community support for the group. There was so much enthusiasm from the entire cast of 18 children and 7 adults as they performed Jack and the Beanstalk together.CastJosh Stone (Jack Trot) was super in the role of principal boy playing the cheerful son of the Dame with a big smile and lots of enthusiasm. He had clear speech and a good singing voice. He had lots of energy and seemed to be enjoying being on stage giving a very confident performance.Ian Robinson (Dame Trot) really looked the part as the Dame with super makeup, costumes, and wigs. He had good movement around the stage and a good rapport with the audience. Although he did not use the typical falsetto voice synonymous with a pantomime Dame, he delivered his lines and corny jokes in character. He spoke his songs in rhythm rather than singing and between him and the pianist cleverly turned his slight loss of rhythm into part of the performance to the amusement of the audience.Eva Burgess (Simone, Jack’s sister), was engagingly and naturally played by Eva who managed to encourage plenty of audience participation from the outset with her calls for encouragement to be brave. She had lovely clear diction and bags of character.Shawn Archer and Claire McCorquodale (Daisy the Cow) Together, these two made a delightfully funny Daisy, they had great physicality and comic timings and some brilliant facial expressions. The milking parlour scene complete with lots of ‘pull the udder one jokes’ where a member of the audience was brought up onto stage to milk her was hilarious.Stephen Cook (King Bertram) gave a good portrayal of the rather absent minded and ineffectual King. On occasions he seemed a little hesitant with his lines, but this worked for the character. Stephen looked the part and engaged well with the other actors in their quest to free the princess.Isla Meaney (Princess) This young lady simply shone on stage with a winning smile and she performed with energy and pace. She was the perfect modern heroine, playing the principal girl with sass and a dose of vigour. Isla’s singing was superb with lovely tone and dynamics.Alice Bold (Trumpet) I really loved Alice’s performance. She had excellent comic timing, and great physicality and facial expressions. She was perfect as the King’s knave and was absolutely in control of the proceedings. The scene where she was an eavesdropping tree was brilliantly done.Samantha Archer (Edena the Eco Fairy) entered gracefully in her green and natural looking costume to give us the introduction to the pantomime. She had a warmth and charm about her character which contrasted well with the baddies. Samantha narrated throughout in perfectly timed rhyming verse. She had a good singing voice and balanced well with Slimeball in the audience participation song ‘Walla Walla Bing Bang’. She was supported by fairies Seren Astley and Alma Burnage who moved with grace around the stage.Emily Archer (Slimeball) as the baddie and henchman of the giant managed the audience well responding perfectly to all the booing. She was actually quite a nice baddie and maybe could have developed her meanness a bit more in the part. Emily managed her rhyming lines well and her relationship with Edena the good fairy was very well played. She had very clear diction in both her spoken lines and in her singing and was confident on stage.Alex Meaney (Giant Blundebore) was gruff and menacing which worked well for the role of the giant. Being a tall adult with a cast made up mostly of children helped to emphasise that he was a scary
giant. Alex coped extremely well when things didn’t go according to plan with the stealing of his keys, moving in his chair so that eventually they could be untied.Scarlett Rimmer (Ghost) The spooky ghost dance was a great routine and Scarlett’s entrances and exits onto the forestage to scare the Dame and her friends were perfectly timed.VillagersOscar Archer, Seren Astley, Isla Burgess, Alma Burnage, Gabe Bowers, Jake Hutchins, Leo Hutchins, Naomi Hutchins, Kathryn Bowers, Lisa Bullock, Brooke Lawrence, Kendra Matthews, Maisie Mildenhall, Billy Mildenhall, Scarlett Rimmer and Erin Fox-Shatford
The large ensemble of youngsters accompanied by two of the chaperones on stage were a colourful group of villagers who added good support to the principals. Many had step forward lines which they delivered well. Together, they sang with confidence with many of the group taking solo lines in the songs. They all danced with energy and obvious enjoyment.The Goblin EliteBilly Mildenhall (Sarge), Kendra Matthews (Goblin Smith), Maisie Mildenhall (Goblin Jones), Erin Fox Shatford (Goblin Chetwyn Douglas-Scott),
Led by Sarge, the team of the goblin elite worked very well together, delivering their lines with clarity and moving on stage with confidence.The Trainee GoblinsOscar Archer, Seren Astley, Isla Burgess, Alma Burnage, Gabe Bowers, Jake Hutchins, Leo Hutchins, Naomi Hutchins
The trainees entered from the hall and marched up onto the stage in synchronicity to the well-known US Marine chant “I don’t know but I’ve been told’. They were very amusing as they ‘shook’ in line and delivered their spoken lines and corny jokes with panache. They had excellent comic timing and it was great to see how confident even the youngest actors were.CreativesNatalie Ann Riley (Director/Choreographer) assisted by Joanna Dewey (Producer)
Together, the Director and Producer had clearly worked very hard to bring together all the very many elements required to manage a show of this size with such a large junior cast, which they did with great success.
The show had been well cast, and Natalie had developed the chemistry between the principal actors both young and older so that they were very natural together. The cast effectively brought out all the humour of the script delivering the corny pantomime jokes and innuendos perfectly and engaging the audience to participate in the fun. It is quite a challenge to work with such a young cast, but it definitely paid off and it was lovely to see the youngsters performing so confidently on-stage developing skills that they will employ for years to come.
Natalie had designed some of the action to take place in front of the tabs including the ghost dance and the audience participations song which worked effectively to cover the necessary changes taking place behind without losing any continuity of action.
The choreography was designed with simple steps which the cast danced very well, and it was clear that everyone knew the routines and were enjoying them.Matthew Trigwell (Pianist) accompanied the cast songs on the piano at the front of the stage, as well as playing the underscore and some of the sound effects. The group all sang really well together and the smiles on their faces and obvious enjoyment when they sang were fantastic. It was clear that Matt was enjoying himself and his interaction with the Dame when things went slightly amiss added to the humour. I am sure that having Matt close on hand to support them gave confidence to all the singers both young and old.Elliott Riley (Stage Manager) assisted by Georgina Mildenhall
The stage was well managed with the entrances and exits being kept clear so that the large cast could access the stage unimpeded, and Elliott succeeded in ensuring that the show ran smoothly from start to finish. I am sure that the director and cast were reassured to have such an experienced manager backstage supporting them.Kathryn Bowers, Charlotte Bullock and Lisa Bullock (Chaperones)
With so many children in the cast and it is essential to have the support of chaperones and for this show, two of the chaperones accompanied the youngsters on stage, even singing a solo each. There were many different entrance points and movement within the hall, and along with the stage manager, the chaperones ensured that they were supervised and safe at all times.Phil Day (Set Design and Props Manager) assisted by Shawn Archer, Joanna Dewey, Stephen Cook, Ben Hutchings, Roy Hutchings, Georgina Mildenhall, Sam Mildenhall, Elliott Riley, Natalie Ann Riley (Set Build Crew)
I really liked the door effect at the beginning between the tabs which cleverly gave the impression that we were entering a book for the story of Jack and the Beanstalk. In the first act, the set was designed and painted as a village scene and as Dame Trot’s dairy. In the second act, we were transported to the giant’s kitchen up in the clouds and back to the village. The set had been well designed and painted to effectively show each location whilst leaving a good-sized acting space. The rising beanstalk at the end of act one added to the scene and was very effective and impressive. There were a good number of props which added to the action and in particular, the three-legged milking stool and milk bucket were very authentic in the dairy. The giant’s harp and chicken with a very large golden egg were also very effective.Ben Hutchings (Lighting and Sound)
The lighting and sound were well run with the stage well-lit in all areas. There was a good use of coloured lighting in the hall and the strobe lighting was very effective in the chase scene. The sound effects were well cued and the sound between the keyboard and singers well balanced.Mo Osbourne (Costume Mistress) assisted by Lynette Newey and Karen Robinson
The costumes were super and very effective. The villagers were very colourful and well-co-ordinated and the Dame had a fine set of dresses and wigs. I really liked the contrast between Edena’s natural colours and nature effect and Slimeball’s ‘steam punk look’ It accentuated the good and the bad. The giant dressed in a shabby suit was reminiscent of Roal Dahl’s BFG which suited his demeanor.

February 2023

Kintbury St. Mary's Drama Group

Kintbury St. Mary's Drama Group was founded in 1972 by Mrs. Christine Millard and Rev. Albert Millard with the mission to bring plays and entertainment to the village of Kintbury. We proudly welcome community members from Kintbury and surrounding villages to join us, with a special emphasis on involving children and teenagers in our annual pantomime.

Our group is inclusive, welcoming everyone from year 1 primary school students to those aged 99 and beyond! Each summer, we hold auditions for the annual pantomime, with rehearsals beginning in September. Rehearsals typically take place on Friday nights, with additional Sunday sessions for song and dance practice. A comprehensive rehearsal schedule is provided to all members before they commit to auditions.The much-anticipated show is performed during the February half-term of the following year.For more information, please contact us.

Join the Group

There are lots of ways to get involved in drama.Performing
Are you keen to find out more?
Would you like to take part in the 2025/2026 pantomime?Child Chaperone
Do you hold an enhanced DBS certificate, have experience and love working with children. We need chaperones to support our cast during rehearsals and throughout the performance period.Front of House
Are you able to support the group helping at performances at the box office, managing the raffle or serving refreshments?Set Building
Do you have carpentry skills or handy with a paint brush?Costume
Perhaps you are a talented seamstress or nifty with a needle?Make-Up
Can you use those glamourising skills to bring our Dame to life OR are you a talented face painter? - often required in panto.Lighting & Sound Operators
Are you wired to tackle the technical challenges with spot on timing?If you are interested in joining or would like to know more please contact us today.