Pantomime is the bedrock of regional theatre, says Arts Council

It’s that time of year again when millions of people head to pantomimes to experience the bright lights, cheesy jokes and glamorous dames. A BBC investigation has found theatres are relying on these festive productions for a big chunk of their earnings – with one reporting last year’s panto brought in 45% of its annual income.

For many children, a trip to the panto is their very first taste of the arts.

A class of seven and eight-year-olds fizz with excitement, with no real idea about the comedy timing, over-the-top baddies and “behind you” jokes ahead of them.

They have seen the classic Disney film Beauty and the Beast, but never realised watching the story “live” was even possible.

Armed with their packed lunches in one hand and a friend’s hand clasped in the other, the pupils from Fieldhead Primary Academy in Kirklees walk to the local bus stop because the school cannot afford to put on private coaches.

The journey to Lawrence Batley Theatre in Huddersfield takes about an hour, but the route to funding today’s experience began a year ago.

Bake sales, discos and summer fairs run by volunteers and teachers raised more than £2,000 to make this trip possible.

It has been driven by head teacher Donna Popek, who is focused on developing children’s experiences beyond the classroom.

She says: “We just want the children to really flourish. We are very aware of the financial difficulties some of the families have and just don’t have the opportunities for them to visit these places.”

That school is not alone. Willows Academy in Grimsby has arranged for all 190 pupils to walk to their nearby theatre to keep costs down.

Head teacher Sarah Cox says pantos are an opportunity for children at the school to experience dancing and performing in real life.

It means they can “see life outside the little area of Grimsby they live in”, Ms Cox explains.

Darren Henley, chief executive of Arts Council England, says pantomimes are the “absolute bedrock” that regional theatre across across the country are built upon.

“It’s a couple of hours where you can lose yourself. It’s traditional, it’s modern, it’s innovative,” he adds.

As the show starts in the 500-seat theatre in Huddersfield, bright lights wash over the children’s faces, their ears startled by the band.

The audience becomes captivated and the chatter stops. It is replaced by gleeful boos and screams of laughter at a beautifully timed 6-7 reference.

During the interval, one girl puts on her coat, ready to go home and rates the panto 1,000 out of 1,000. Another looks over and shouts: “That was great – I’ll come again.”

When they learn there is a part two still to come, they join hands and jump for joy.

Lawrence Batley Theatre is in the midst of a 56-show run which will bring in about 20,000 people throughout December.

The panto is in its ninth year and chief executive Becky Dash says she does not think the theatre would exist without one.

“They are part of a truly wonderful English tradition that is hard to explain,” she says. “They are part of people’s routine. People come with grandparents or schools. They are memories that stay with you forever.”

Last year’s panto was the theatre’s biggest earner, generating 16% of its annual income.

The theatre says it is continually driving to bring new audiences to the stage and panto plays a big part of that, especially through its Christmas Heroes pay-it-forward donation scheme.

For every £20 raised, someone receives a free ticket, ice cream and programme, with 850 tickets given out to families across Kirklees who would not ordinarily be able to afford it.

“For those few hours they’re with us, it’s just a total escape from anything else going on in their life,” says Ms Dash.

The BBC contacted every theatre in Yorkshire and Lincolnshire to get a snapshot on the impact of pantomimes and found:

• The 16 theatres that shared revenue figures with us said pantos brought in between 9% and 45% of their annual income in 2024
• About half a million people across the region watched a pantomime last year
• The 25 theatres that gave us audience numbers saw an overall increase of 4% from 2019 to 2024

The Academy Theatre is a 200-seat live arts venue in what was once a former ice cream factory in Birdwell, a village on the outskirts of Barnsley.

Owner and manager Julie Whitfield opened the theatre in 2003 with her father and has put on a Christmas panto ever since, describing it as its “stalwart of the year”.

The show provided almost half of the theatre’s income last year.

A cast of seven will bring in audiences throughout December as Cinderella seeks out her lost shoe and potential love interest, gripping audiences with punchy songs and brightly-coloured costumes in an intimate setting.

Last year, more than 5,000 people bought tickets.

Ms Whitfield says it is set to be “another good year” after a gradual build-up following the coronavirus pandemic, which nearly saw the venue close.

Now the challenge for Ms Whitfield, as for many theatres, is the rising cost of living.

She says: “Families haven’t got a lot of surplus money so we try and keep our ticket prices to a reasonable level so they can come and enjoy it, without worrying about the credit card bill.”

Pantos are a chance to develop young local talent too.

Cev Barker, who now writes the annual show and stars as one of the dames, has been performing at the venue for 20 years.

Harry Bladon, 20, who has attended the in-house theatre school since the age of eight, is playing Buttons in this year’s show – taking a month out of studying to make his professional debut.

He says: “It’s very exciting to do it but there’s a lot more pressure.”

For those who do not know their Aladdins from their Sleeping Beauties, Ms Whitfield says anyone watching a panto must tap into their inner dame.

She says: “Panto is cheesy – no apologies for that. But it’s also fun, high energy. But unfortunately if there is that snobbery, then yeah don’t come – ’cause panto’s not for you.”

Additional data reporting by Ema Sabljak and Jonathan Fagg.