Rapunzel

Rapunzel - a pantomime staged by Rainhill Musical Theatre Company at Rainhill Village Hall, Dane Court, Rainhill on Friday, 16th January 2026.

The original Rapunzel fairytale was presented/published by The Brothers Grimm in 1812. It’s a lesser known, lesser performed pantomime, although since Disney produced the film ‘Tangled’ 2010, which is loosely based on the Rapunzel story, its popularity appears to be on the rise. The version used by Rainhill was written by Tom Whalley Productions and tells the tale about a King and Queen from a far-off Kingdom who were blessed with a baby girl with magical, golden hair. They named her Rapunzel. Their happiness was short-lived, as one day the jealous, evil witch Mother Gothel, kidnapped the child and locked her in a tower; selfishly squandering all of her powers for herself. Years later, with the help of local hairdresser Dame Fanny Follicle, her silly son Pascal and the dashing Prince Ryder, they set off on a quest to find/rescue Rapunzel ... would they find her, would they be able to rescue her .... we sat back and waited to find out!  

Production Team... given the task of leading us up ‘The Tower’ and delivering us an ‘hair-raising’ production was Karen Woods (Director), Wayne Oakes (Musical Director), Meg Charlton (Choreographer) and Ruth Gibb (Producer) what a great job they did! We had
an enthusiastic, well-rehearsed cast who took to the stage, all looking ready for the challenges set. The production flowed with ease and it was obvious that our ‘three leaders’ knew what they wanted from this script and how to achieve it!  We had some well-chosen music/songs that ‘slotted’ really well into the script and the storyline. The choreo was simple yet really effective, fitting the narrative really well and obviously playing to the strengths of the dancers and the available space on stage, which is always a consideration here at Dane Court! If the applause, laughter, boos and hisses that echoed around the Village Hall throughout the entire production was anything to go by, this was a panto enjoyed by the ‘full house’ present that evening!  Congrats one and all.

The Cast...  a smallish cast as panto’s go... just seventeen... eight named principals, four ‘nits’, a newsreader and an Ensemble. All the cast looked happy, engaged and they included....
Emily-Jane Nugent who played ‘Rapunzel’; Lynsey Corner – ‘Mother Gothel’; David Flanagan – ‘Dame Fanny Follicle’; Gavin Simpson-White – ‘King Bouffant’; Lauren Bewley – ‘Fairy Dandruff’; Laura Riley – ‘Prince Ryder’;
David Stevens – ‘Pascal’; Claire Jones – ‘Gerald the Herald’;  We then had ‘The Nits’ ... Pip Bradshaw, Suzi Davies, Claire Jones and Annie Topping; Michelle Williams – ‘Newsreader’.
The Ensemble included Barbara Marsh, Fiona O’Gorman, Ryan Greenall, Haydn Saunders and Mia Ballans.
Well, it’s ‘sticky neck out time’ ... time for MY ‘show stealer’ and MY favourite characters, and like I always say, these are MY choices, you’ll have your own, but these are mine and I’m going to start with MY Showstealer which was a ‘toss up’ between two ... David Stevens portrayal of ‘Pascal’ and Lauren Bewley’s portrayal of ‘Fairy Dandruff’ and I’ve gone for Lauren’s portrayal of the ‘ethereal creature’ that was ‘Fairy Dandruff’, a young fairy trying to earn her ‘wings’! OMG from first entrance to final bow, Lauren did it her way and that way was very special! Loved the ‘pose’ with one arm in the air, the other down toward the floor (Usain Bolt... ish) and then the way she turned her back on the audience when she ‘demanded’ the curtains for the next ‘scene’ ... ‘simple things’, but ‘her things’ ... which made them really special!  Looked fabulous, costume was perfect.... stage presence was great, good singing voice... loved ‘Fabulous Fairy’ great song, sung well and to top it all off.... she was that good, she actually got her ‘wings’ ... be very proud Lauren! David Steven’s made ‘Pascal’ his own! Great stage presence, had an immediate connection with audience that continued throughout the production!  Loved his energy, his mannerisms and his facial expressions. Worked well with ‘The Dame’ and with all the cast really. Great comedic character created, great timing ... so many great one liners... loved the ‘Hip Hip Replacement’ line... be proud David! David Flanagan and Gavin Simpson-White also created two good characters ... ‘Dame Fanny Follicle’ and ‘King Bouffant’ respectively. David’s first time as a ‘Panto Dame’, but he looked completely at home! Loved the rapport with the audience, would have liked you to have spent a little more time with ‘Ronaldo’ (think that was his name), but that will come with experience (I’ve just completed my thirty-third year as a Panto Dame and I’m still learning, but I always get MY Ronaldo ahahahah!). Gavin also did a good job with the King. Great comic timing, good facial expressions and mannerisms... be proud both of you! I also thought Emily did a good job as ‘Rapunzel’, as did Lynsey and Laura with ‘Mother Gothel’ and ‘Prince Ryder’. Well done Rainhill ... loved the panto... well done everyone!  

Staging/Tech... sometimes you just wonder how societies do what they do on such small stages, that have little or no wing space... but they do and they do it with effortless ease, or that’s what it appears from the front.... let’s face it... it’s gotta be a difficult job!  So, congrats to Andy Pink (Stage Manager) and his Stage Crew.  To the set builders... Karen Woods, Claire Jones, Meg Charlton and the Cast as a whole! A number of flats were used throughout the production to suggest locations. They moved on and off seamlessly. Rapunzel’s ‘Tower’ was built stage right and was permanent. The flats and scenery used, worked really well and allowed the production to flow. Sound and Lighting were under the watchful eye of Kelsey Fulton and Aber Lighting respectively. Sound was always an issue here until Kelsey arrived on the scene and is now a past problem. Lighting was OK a little dark in places at times, but that could have been actor error as much as a lighting issue... but nothing the affected the overall production.

Orchestra... being looked after by the ever so experienced Wayne Oakes (MD and Keys) the band sounded great throughout and supported all the singers really well. The orchestra included Jack Birkett (Guitar), Kevin Bates (Bass) and Jeremy Smith (Drums)... congrats guys!

Costumes and Props... we had a quality wardrobe for this panto.  Loved, loved, loved the costumes, they looked great, were of the era and enhanced this production ever so much. Sourced and under the watchful eye of Karen Woods, Pip Bradshaw, Fiona O’Gorman, Ruth Gibb, Claire Jones, Annie Topping and the cast themselves.... be proud ladies and a few ‘Nits’ ahahah!

Thank you so much for your invitation, (I must remember to look at the start time, but, as you know, I always like to make an entrance... ahahah!). It really is always a pleasure attending Dane Court ... once again, thanks to Keith Marsh for looking after Susan and I, always appreciated ... already looking forward to ‘Rock of Ages’... but I’ll see some of you before then at the District Dinner.

Stay Safe, Keep well
“Stronger Together”

Jim Briscoe
NODA NW
District 6 Rep

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