History Theatre / Pantomime

[[redirect:Pantomime]]

Pantomime ("panto") is a {{slapstick}} comedic stage play aimed at children (though it is not unusual for the material to be laced with [[ParentalBonus subtle adult humour]] and {{double entendre}}s) and performed in Britain and Ireland mostly around Christmas time. See [[Theatre/{{Pantomime}} Theatre/Pantomime]] for details. This is a staple of UsefulNotes/AVeryBritishChristmas, and is therefore referenced throughout British culture; hence, it qualifies as a genre and a trope.

Not to be confused with miming things (as in EnemyMime or MimeAndMusicOnlyCartoon), which is what "pantomime" means in America. Also see {{Mummers}}, another British theatrical tradition.
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!!Sub-tropes and other tropes commonly associated with Panto:
* AudienceColoringAdaptation: Because many people know the stock pantomime stories primarily from panto rather than from the original sources, their knowledge of those plots may be slightly distorted. For example, many Britons probably assume that Literature/{{Aladdin}}'s mother was always called "Widow Twankey" -- but that was originally a pantomime joke, based on the name of a cheap brand of China tea.
* Much '''[[CrosscastRole crossdressing]]''', specifically:
** ''[[DragQueen The Dame]]'', played by a middle-aged male actor in quite ''heroic'' quantities of dresses, makeup and enormous fake boobs. Often the most popular and publicised member of the cast. Usually the mother or aunt of the Principal Boy character (see below); in ''Cinderella'' two dames are often used to play the Ugly Sisters.
** ''[[{{Bifauxnen}} The Principal Boy]]''. Sometimes the titular character, (eg, Jack or Aladdin), often a StraightMan to the Dame. The principal boy is traditionally played by a young female actor as if they had escaped from the pages of Creator/EnidBlyton (think "Bob" from ''Series/{{Blackadder}} II''). Traditionally slaps her thigh a lot. These days, professional pantomimes will often have a male Principal Boy so they can hire a teenybopper soap actor/pop star to draw in the crowds. Though it's somewhat debatable whether the Principal Boy, when female, really counts as "cross-dressing"; she tends to wear a costume mainly composed of a leotard, fishnet tights, and high heels, and often looks significantly more feminine and sexy than the Principal Girl. This is down to the ParentService roots of the character; in the nineteenth century, putting an attractive actress in a mock-medieval doublet and hose was the only way of showing off her legs without causing a massive scandal.
* '''The Principal Girl''', always young and full of wholesome charm. She will fall in love with the Principal Boy, or a PrinceCharming if there is no Principal Boy. For added [[GenderBender gender bending]] hilarity, a boy may be cast in this role, but even with a girl it works. Friendly gay jokes are a bit of a tradition in the panto.
* '''Pantomime Villains''', DastardlyWhiplash types straight out of Victorian melodrama. Black goatees, cloaks, canes, top hats, [[EvilLaugh devilish laughs]]. [[EvilIsHammy Played with delicious relish]] -- [[EvilIsCool it's the part every actor wants]]. Green lighting is usually present, as is appearing in a cloud of smoke. Traditionally these part were often Grand Viziers with turbans (think Jafar from Disney's Aladdin), or Demon Kings, but PoliticalCorrectness... This verges on being a full-scale sub-trope, as describing somebody in Britain as a "pantomime villain" is a shorthand way of saying that they are blatantly evil to the point of seeming to glory in their bad behaviour. Creator/AlanRickman's performance in ''Film/RobinHoodPrinceOfThieves'' or Creator/GaryOldman in ''Film/TheFifthElement'' demonstrate the kind of performance this entails, though these are both understated and subtle compared to a proper panto villain. Anyone familiar with the career of Creator/BrianBlessed knows that he's absolutely perfect for such roles.
* '''AudienceParticipation'''; in particular, a villain will be stalking a hero around the stage, requiring the audience to holler "HE'S BEHIND YOU!" at the tops of their voices. Usually, the villain will duck behind cover as the hero exaggeratedly looks around, then looks back at the audience and says "Oh, no he isn't." The audience dutifully hollers ''"Oh, yes he is!"'' in response. This can [[OverlyLongGag go on for some time]].
** [[MetaGuy One character]] in particular will have NoFourthWall; the rest of the cast will only [[LeaningOnTheFourthWall lean on it heavily]].
** Some productions go the extra mile and have the audience 'take part' in the final battle of the play - the comedic characters will hand out massive sacks full of foam blocks to be thrown down from the stalls in the events that follow. Everyone gets a chance at this, even in theatres with an upper circle where the bulk of the foam will just gently glide down to the lower sections of seating.
** This also seems to happen whenever a panto actor appears ''anywhere'' in front of an audience: British audiences are prone to collectively getting into spontaneous "No he isn't"/"Yes he is" routines with well-known panto actors even during talk shows, quiz shows, panel shows, and other shows ''utterly'' unrelated to panto. (See Christopher Biggins' two-minute appearance on ''The Big Fat Quiz Of The Year''.)
** Any good panto will leave a pause for the regular jokes. "I didn't come here to be insulted!" (pause) Audience member(s): "Where do you usually go?" If the audience doesn't say the necessary line another cast member will.
** The audience are expected to loudly boo and hiss whenever the villains are onstage.
* '''Sing Along'''. Usually at the end[[note]] this is usually done by the comedian so the rest of the cast will have time to put their posh frocks on for the final bow[[/note]], the victorious heroes will teach the audience a song. Often the audience will be split in half and ordered to compete against each other. This virtually always ends with something along the lines of 'For the first time in Panto history, it's a draw' to avoid hurt feelings on either side.
* '''The PantomimeAnimal''', usually a four-legged creature such as a horse or a cow played by two actors in an animal costume -- a full-scale sub-trope with its own entry.
* '''The Harlequinade''': Although a full-blown Transformation Scene is only seen nowadays in self-conscious recreations of the early pantomime, the term is sometimes used to refer to a dialogue-free slapstick interlude. Sometimes this is replaced with a more serious mime or dance section.
* '''{{Shout Out}}s''': Usually prior to the sing-along. Basically, someone in the cast takes the opportunity to read out the names of the groups in the audience. There's always a Scout troupe, a primary or secondary school class, or a Boys'/Girls' Brigade in the audience; normally there's more than one.
** Or they'll use material from other notable comedy acts, preferably older for the adults to recognise and the kids to enjoy. Such as Creator/MorecambeAndWise's version of [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9HgFLJLY-2o "I'm Wishing"]] for any Snow White shows.
** Also, expect a '''''lot''''' of [[ActorAllusion Actor Allusions]]
** You'll also sometimes get groups that will ask for a shout-out for their visiting friend/family member who’s foreign and has never seen a panto before; cue laughter from the audience and cast members joking that they must be having an ''interesting'' evening.
* '''Sweeties''': treats are often thrown into the audience from the stage at some point (again, often at the end).
** Sadly, this tradition is being phased out in many places because of health and safety (to be fair, a fun-sized chocolate bar in the eye can be ''painful''). Some shows will have a variation e.g. in ''Aladdin'' where Widow Twankey might throw comically oversized laundry into the audience instead.
* '''Big production''' - even the smallest amateur company will pull out all the stops for their pantomime. This is not a genre concerned with either realism or artistic minimalism. Sets are large and elaborate, the dame will usually have the [[PimpedOutDress most magnificent over-the-top dress]] (and change it every couple of scenes) and there is often a scene involving gunge, foam or other "messy" fun. ''Aladdin'' often features a scene in the Chinese laundry run by Widow Twanky, providing an excuse for filling the stage with suds. Or characters will randomly decide to do some baking, resulting in flour being thrown. Elaborate lighting and abundant use of pyrotechnics abounds; the villains and other minor antagonists often enter from stage left to a barrage of green lighting and smoke, sometimes even with stage fireworks going off. Some theatres even employ strobe lights! During the CurtainCall, the already-elaborate costumes of the characters are replaced with the same, [[RuleOfCool but outfitted in shiny gold, silver, electric blue and neon green.]]
* '''The Intermission''': Like many productions, most pantos have an intermission roughly half way through, and it stays true to its Victorian roots. Sometimes, the minor cast may stay on stage to perform the shout outs - in addition, this is usually the time staff at the theatre come around to sell pots of ice cream, so it's definitely worth sticking around for.
* '''{{Improv}}''': You just can't work in panto if you're not prepared to improv occasionally. Where other productions might do a show-stop, panto just soldiers on. The Fairy Godmother's wand breaks? She gets another one from offstage and then claims that she always carries a spare. Need to cover an extra-long costume change? Ask the audience how they're doing. The Villain and the Dame actually ''trying'' to make the other corpse? Pretty normal. After all, panto runs are often fairly demanding (two or three shows a day for six weeks to two months), and the actors need to let off steam somehow, so a little extra japery is usually allowed for.
* '''Guest stars''' - a [[OlderThanYouThink trope dating back to]] [[UsefulNotes/VictorianBritain the late 19th Century in the UK]], whereby if more than one major panto is running in a town, they will often compete for custom by playing one-upmanship with the quality of the cast. Once the realm of respected actors (and [[Series/TheSootyShow Sooty]]), this particular aspect took a bashing during TheEighties and TheNineties when [[StuntCasting soap actors, Wolf from Gladiators, reality TV stars and Frank Bruno]] all decided to get in on the act; fortunately, most theatres seem to be a little more discerning nowadays, but the occasional Series/BigBrother contestant still slips through the cracks. This can be very lucrative work, which is why Australian soap actors decamp en masse to England in time for the season. Julian Clary, Christopher Biggins, Creator/BrianBlessed and Creator/JohnBarrowman are guaranteed to be in panto every single year. We've even taken the liberty of getting a few actors from across the pond, including Creator/HenryWinkler, Creator/DirkBenedict, Creator/DavidHasselhoff (yes, really.) and Creator/MrT.
** A more recent variant is the casting of an actor with [[ShakespearianActors impeccable dramatic credentials]] (such as Sir Creator/IanMcKellen[[note]]One review concluded "...at least we can tell our grandchildren that we saw Mc Kellen's Twankey and it was huge"[[/note]]) as a Dame or another minor character.
** In some productions, the guest stars can turn into the SpotlightStealingSquad, but [[JustifiedTrope only if they have the skill necessary to hold the audience's attention]].
* '''[[HistoricalInJoke Local and topical in-jokes]]'''. Some pantos have a script written specially each year. Others are available pre-written [[HarpoDoesSomethingFunny with [insert topical joke], [insert local joke], [insert name of celebrity famous for being fat] written in]]. Often jokes are at the expense of an area of the city known for being posh, or run-down; or a rivalry with a local town (see Springfield v Shelbyville). Sometimes (especially from the villain) they're just [[TakeThatAudience broadsides at the area in general.]]
* '''[[{{Double Entendre}} Innuendo]]'''. While Pantomimes are ostensibly aimed at children, much of the humour is composed of sexual innuendo [[ParentalBonus intended to go over the children's heads]]. ("I do declare, the [[PrinceCharming Prince]]'s [[DancesAndBalls balls]] get larger every year!") PeripheryDemographic features heavily here. It isn't unusual to find work outings booked to a Panto with nary a child to be seen. Frankly half the people there with kids have only dragged them along as cover.
* '''Traditions''' that are OlderThanPrint; the good fairy enters from stage right (from the audience's point of view this is on the left) and the villain enters from stage left (right from the point of view of the audience). This convention goes back to the medieval mystery plays, where the right side of the stage symbolised {{Heaven}} and the left side symbolised {{Hell}}.
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A pantomime (or "panto" for short) is a British (and Irish) ''category'' of theatre, in which classic {{fairy tale}}s and similar stories are laced with {{slapstick}} comedy, [[CrossCastRole cross-dressing actors]] and [[ParentalBonus the occasional naughty joke the kids won't get]]. It's a soup of older genres, creating a composite genre which is traditionally played [[UsefulNotes/AVeryBritishChristmas around Christmas]] even though the performances themselves aren't Christmas-y whatsoever. Its long tradition has made it into a mass of tropes; see the entry for {{Pantomime}} as a trope.

This is a very British tradition -- which (like most such traditions) baffles Americans; America used to have a somewhat similar tradition in {{Vaudeville}}, minus the association with Christmas, but that died out around the turn of the twentieth century.

Pantomimes (or "pantos") are usually based on a relatively small pool of basic stories, mostly fairy tales and other PublicDomain media. These include:
* "The Babes in the Wood"
* "Literature/{{Cinderella}}"
* "Literature/JackAndTheBeanstalk"
* "Literature/SnowWhite"
* "Literature/SleepingBeauty"
* "Literature/{{Aladdin}}"
* "Franchise/PeterPan"
* "Literature/DickWhittington"
* RobinHood
* MotherGoose rhymes
* "Literature/LittleRedRidingHood"
* ''Literature/RobinsonCrusoe''

Pantomime began as a development of the CommediaDellArte or Harlequinade, in which the characters from that tradition were used as a UniversalAdaptorCast to parody well-known stories. Victorian pantomimes often included a climactic "Transformation Scene", in which the characters were transformed into their Harlequinade analogues. This became increasingly perfunctory and was eventually abandoned as the pure Harlequinade died out and the characters became [[ForgottenTrope less recognisable]] to younger audience members. Panto revolves around an array of conventions, so much that [[SpoiledByTheFormat the audience comes already knowing what is going to happen]]. Because the stories are generally children's stories, ParentalBonus is to be expected in order to be able to entertain as much audience as possible without needing to AvoidTheDreadedGRating.

Pantos are traditionally TheatricalProductions, but [[http://www.its-behind-you.com/tvpanto.html quite a few]] have been recorded for LiveActionTelevision, such as Creator/TheITVPanto. They have also featured on BBC radio; the most famous being ''Black Cinderella II Goes East'' in 1978, which featured the cast of ''Radio/ImSorryIllReadThatAgain'' and was co-produced by Creator/DouglasAdams. In the U.S., there's [[https://americanpanto.com/ Lythgoe Family Panto]], which combines the typical building blocks of British pantos with the aesthetics of a JukeboxMusical.

Pantos will usually have a series of songs throughout the play, performed by the characters and sometimes accompanied by a chorus which sings and dances. Panto is also very fond of AudienceParticipation. You'll usually find the audience booing the villain, feeling empathy for the rejected characters, warning the hero of incoming danger, etc.

Traditional roles in panto generally include, but are not limited to:
* '''The Principal Boy:''' The romantic male lead, traditionally [[SweetPollyOliver played by a woman wearing men's clothing]] (even though a man playing that role isn't out of the question and is actually becoming more common with time). They're the main character in pantomime, that comes in [[AllLovingHero many]] [[AntiHero flavors]].
* '''The Principal Girl:''' The Principal Boy's love interest, played by... [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin a girl]]. She's generally depicted as [[IncorruptiblePurePureness pure and good-hearted]].
* '''The Villain:''' The BigBad of the story, they're often depicted doing what they do ForTheEvulz and [[BadBoss frequently mistreat their]] {{Mooks}}, and have a SmallNameBigEgo to hide the fact they're generally [[StupidEvil ineffective]] and always outsmarted by the hero at the end. He'll usually enter from the left (unlike the Good Fairy and other heroic characters who enter from the right) as a convenience dating back from the Medieval mystery plays where Right was considered Heaven and [[ASinisterClue left was Hell]].
* '''The Dame:''' Played by [[DisguisedInDrag a man]], she's panto's larger-than-life GrandeDame wearing a PimpedOutDress that borders on RummageSaleReject and is generally part of the Principal Boy's family, usually his [[IncrediblyLamePun Large]] [[LargeHam Ham]] of a [[MyBelovedSmother mother]] acting in a very melodramatic way, trying to remain a ProperLady despite her [[{{Gonk}} less-than-flattering]] appearance and [[ChristmasCake always failing in romancing a guy for a long enough time]]. Of course, it wouldn't be complete without getting the Dame in undignified situations. Despite her ChewToy tendencies, she's hardly evil - if she is, she's a HarmlessVillain at best.
* '''The Comic Lead:''' As the name implies, they're the comic relief (if the Dame isn't enough anyways). Usually a [[DumbIsGood dense but good-natured person]]. If they're male, they can also be interested by the Principal Girl, but they're generally [[CannotSpitItOut too timid to speak out their heart]] and will resort to sobbing to the audience.
* '''The Good Fairy:''' She's the BigGood. She serves as [[FourthWallObserver an intermediary between the play and the audience]], often being the narrator of the story [[GratuitousIambicPentameter who likes speaking in verse for whatever reason]]. If all hope is lost, she'll pull a DeusExMachina, solving everything up with a fling of her magic wand.
* '''The PantomimeAnimal:''' Most often a horse -- [[TwoMenOneDress that is, two people dressed up as a horse with one at the front and the other at the back]]. They often come in outlandish colors and [[ArtisticLicenseBiology non-biologically-correct decorations]].
* '''The Chorus:''' Not exactly a role, but they frequently appear on stage to sing and dance throughout the show several times.

Many other roles can be included depending on the source material, among other things. Not all of the aforementioned roles are mandatory, save for the Principal Boy, the Principal Girl, the Dame and the Villain, really.

The story will always be played as a conflict between [[BlackAndWhiteMorality Good vs Evil]] and will have a HappyEnding no matter what with the villain being defeated and the Principal Boy successfully marrying his love interest and living with her HappilyEverAfter. It's possible to base a panto from a story with a DownerEnding or with unfitting roles, but it must be re-adapted and rewritten to fit the mold again. Generally everyone's back for the CurtainCall, normally following [[DancePartyEnding a dance sequence]] or [[PieInTheFace throwing pies or foam blocks at each other in the final battle]], but it's generally full of energy anyways and panto ''loves'' its {{Slapstick}} humor.

Especially in the United Kingdom, regionalism abounds; depending on where you are, you can guarantee that at least one local school or community group will get a ShoutOut in the intermission, and plenty of jokes about the local area are sprinkled in. There's lots of room for improvisation too, as when things go awry, it's often [[ThrowItIn a lot more fun to simply incorporate]] [[TrashTheSet errant setpieces]] or forgotten lines into the plot than try to work around them.

The genre changed a lot if you wanted to compare it with how it was at its inception, especially due to most of the traditions having loosened significantly, but the fact it's constantly adapting to the modern times is what helps it not fall into decay. The jokes nowadays can get slightly political, or in general reference actual matters in the world, even though it's not abused as the audience still loves a good traditional show that is only enjoyed at a certain time of the year. Nowadays people try and cast [[GuestStar famous people]] in order to draw in [[JustHereForGodzilla more audience]], but generally the role of the Dame stays untouched in that matter as the role is so important and specialized that few famous people can actually play the role of the Dame successfully.

The genre changed a lot if you wanted to compare it with how it was at its inception, especially due to [[SocietyMarchesOn most of the traditions having loosened significantly]], but the fact it's constantly adapting to the modern times is what helps it not fall into decay. The jokes nowadays can get slightly political, or in general reference actual matters in the world, even though it's not abused as the audience still loves a good traditional show that is only enjoyed at a certain time of the year. Nowadays people try and cast [[GuestStar famous people]] in order to draw in [[JustHereForGodzilla more audience]], but generally the role of the Dame stays untouched in that matter as the role is so important and specialized that few famous people can actually play the role of the Dame successfully.

The story will always be played as a conflict between [[BlackAndWhiteMorality Good vs Evil]] and will have a HappyEnding no matter what with the villain being defeated and the Principal Boy successfully marrying his love interest and living with her HappilyEverAfter. It's possible to base a panto from a story with a DownerEnding or with unfitting roles, but it must be re-adapted and rewritten to fit the mold again. Generally everyone [[DancePartyEnding dances in the ending]] or [[PieInTheFace throws pies at each other]], but it's generally full of energy anyways and panto ''loves'' its {{Slapstick}} humor.

Pantomime began as a development of the CommediaDellArte or Harlequinade, in which the characters from that tradition were used as a UniversalAdaptorCast to parody well-known stories. Victorian pantomimes often included a climactic "Transformation Scene", in which the characters were transformed into their Harlequinade analogues. This became increasingly perfunctory and was eventually abandoned as the pure Harlequinade died out and the characters became [[ForgottenTrope less recognisable]] to younger audience members. Panto revolves around an array of conventions, so much that [[SpoiledByTheFormat the audience comes already knowing what is going to happen]]. Because the stories are generally children's stories, ParentalBonus and GettingCrapPastTheRadar are to be expected in order to be able to entertain as much audience as possible without needing to AvoidTheDreadedGRating.

A pantomime (or "panto" for short) is a British (and Irish) ''category'' of theatre, in which classic {{fairy tale}}s and similar stories are laced with slapstick comedy, [[CrossCastRole cross-dressing actors]] and [[ParentalBonus the occasional naughty joke the kids won't get]]. It's a soup of older genres, creating a composite genre which is traditionally played [[UsefulNotes/AVeryBritishChristmas around Christmas]] even though the performances themselves aren't Christmas-y whatsoever. Its long tradition has made it into a mass of tropes; see the entry for {{Pantomime}} as a trope.

A pantomime (or "panto" for short) is a British (and Irish) form of theatre, in which classic {{fairy tale}]s and similar stories are laced with slapstick comedy, [[CrossCastRole cross-dressing actors]] and [[ParentalBonus the occasional naughty joke the kids won't get]]. It's a soup of older genres, creating a composite genre which is traditionally played [[UsefulNotes/AVeryBritishChristmas around Christmas]] even though the performances themselves aren't Christmas-y whatsoever. Its long tradition has made it into a mass of tropes; see the entry for {{Pantomime}} as a trope.

A pantomime (or "panto" for short) is a British form of theatre, in which classic fairy tales are laced with slapstick comedy, [[CrossCastRole cross-dressing actors]] and [[ParentalBonus the occasional naughty joke the kids won't get]]. It's said to be a soup of genres, with heavy influences from CommediaDellArte, among a few other European types of theatre, which had the result of creating a composite genre which is traditionally played [[UsefulNotes/AVeryBritishChristmas around Christmas]] even though the performances themselves aren't Christmas-y whatsoever.

Common source material for them include, but are not limited to: Cinderella, Snow White, Peter Pan, literally anything with a princess, and Dick Whittington, to name a few. But in general, any well-known fairy tale will do as a base.

Panto revolves around an array of conventions, so much that [[SpoiledByTheFormat the audience comes already knowing what is going to happen]]. Because the stories are generally children's stories, ParentalBonus and GettingCrapPastTheRadar are to be expected in order to be able to entertain as much audience as possible without needing to AvoidTheDreadedGRating.

Panto will usually have a series of songs throughout the play, performed by the characters and sometimes accompanied by a chorus which sings and dances. Panto is also very fond of AudienceParticipation, like its inspiration. You'll usually find the audience booing the villain, feeling empathy for the rejected characters, warning the hero of incoming danger, etc.

Many other roles can be included in this genre depending on the source of the play, among other things. Not all of the aforementioned roles are mandatory, save for the Principal Boy, the Principal Girl, the Dame and the Villain, really.

The story will always be a conflict between [[BlackAndWhiteMorality Good vs Evil]] and will have a HappyEnding no matter what with the villain being defeated and the Principal Boy successfully marrying his love interest and living with her HappilyEverAfter. It's possible to base a panto from a story with a DownerEnding or with unfitting roles, but it must be re-adapted and rewritten to fit the mold again. Generally everyone [[DancePartyEnding dances in the ending]] or [[PieInTheFace throws pies at each other]], but it's generally full of energy anyways and panto ''loves'' its slapstick humor.

The genre changed a lot if you wanted to compare it with how it was at its inception, especially due to [[SocietyMarchesOn most of the traditions having loosened significantly]], but the fact it's constantly adapting to the modern times is what is helping it not fall into decay. The jokes nowadays can get slightly political, or in general referencing actual matters in the world, even though it's not abused as the audience still loves a good traditional show that is only enjoyed at a certain time of the year. Nowadays people try and cast [[GuestStar famous people]] in order to draw in [[JustHereForGodzilla more audience]], but generally the role of the Dame stays untouched in that matter as the role is so important and specialized that few famous people can actually play the role of the Dame successfully.

* '''The Horse:''' [[TwoMenOneDress Two people dress up as a horse with one at the front and the other at the back]]. They often come in outlandish colors and [[ArtisticLicenseBiology non-biologically-correct decorations]].

A pantomime (or "panto" for short) is a British form of theatre, in which classic fairy tales are laced with slapstick comedy, [[CrossCastRole cross-dressing actors]] and [[ParentalBonus the occasional naughty joke the kids won't get]]. It's said to be a soup of genres, with heavy influences from CommediaDellArte, among a few other European types of theatre, which had the result of creating a composite genre which is traditionally played [[AVeryBritishChristmas around Christmas]] even though the performances themselves aren't Christmas-y whatsoever.

A pantomime (or "panto" for short) is a British form of theatre, in which classic fairytales are laced with slapstick comedy and [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar the occasional naughty joke the kids won't get]]. Its origin changes depending on who you ask, it could be from the Middle Ages or Victorian times, you never know! But what any Brit will know is that they're a fun experience for all. Common source material for them include, but are not limited to: Cinderella, Snow White, Peter Pan, literally anything with a princess, and Dick Whittington, to name a few.



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!Tropes that can apply to Pantomime:

* AudienceParticipation: all together now: "HE'S BEHIND YOU!"
** And need we forget "Oh yes it is!"? Oh no we don't!
** Sometimes, in the DancePartyEnding, the audience is split into two sides, with each side encouraged to sing louder than the other. This leads to the inevitable tie, [[BlatantLies "For the first time in pantomime history"]].
* DancePartyEnding: it's more singing, but some dancing goes along with it.
* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: some of the humour is this.
* LowerDeckEpisode: sometimes a panto will have a subplot about a supporting character hunting giant spiders or whatever.

** And need we forget "Oh yes it is!"? Oh yes we do!

A pantomime (or "panto" for short) is a British form of theatre, in which classic fairytales are laced with slapstick comedy and [[GettingCrapPastTheRadar the occasional naughty joke the kids won't get]].Its origin changes depending on who you ask, it could be from the Middle Ages or Victorian times, you never know! But what any Brit will know is that they're a fun experience for all. Common source material for them include, but are not limited to: Cinderella, Snow White, Peter Pan, literally anything with a princess, and Dick Whittington, to name a few.