Robin Hood: The Panto 2011
Hong Kong Players
Last year's Hong Kong Players seasonal extravaganza, Pirates of the Panto, which marked the 50th consecutive year in which the company had presented a pantomime, will be a hard act to follow. Nevertheless the co-authors of Robin Hood: The Panto 2011, Teri Fitsell and Katy Forse, are confident they have a winner on their hands.
Fitsell has now been involved in eight pantomimes and has co-written five. Forse has worked on the shows in one capacity or another for about 16 years - and this year marks the first time she is co-directing, with Stephen Bolton.
'It kind of snowballed,' she says. 'Fortunately it's a great team. Andrew Swift is in charge of the music and Mandy Petty takes care of the choreography and there are experienced people handling other aspects. It has been a steep learning curve but it all pulls together.'
Fitsell says they have a strong cast with well-honed comic skills: 'Robin Hood is a girl, Jane Archibald, and we have a wonderful Dame, Dame Guinevere Turrett, who is in love with Friar Tuck, much to his horror. Dame Guinevere is Terry Hart, an ex-rugby player who is big and loud and very funny.'
Each year the writers face the same challenge - coming up with a script that will be fun for children and entertain adults, while incorporating all the traditional pantomime elements.