I WENT FROM CHICAGO TO ABERDEEN
AMERICAN singer Jimmy Osmond is known for being a nice guy – which is why he loves being evil.
He has spent more than 50 years in showbiz after starting out performing with his brothers in The Osmonds from the age of three. And now he’s playing Abanazar in Aladdin at Aberdeen’s His Majesty’s Theatre until January 7.
He said: “It’s fun to do things that are a out of character to what people assume you are. I’ve enjoyed being the baddie.
“My first real baddie role was in the play Chicago, where I was Billy Flynn. After I did that, it convinced my buddy Nick Thomas from Qdos Entertainment (who produce pantos at 35 venues around the UK) I could be a baddie.”
Soon Jimmy was playing Captain Hook in Peter Pan in Swansea in 2013. He said: “I had so much fun that the next time I did panto, I said, ‘Hey guys. Can I please continue being the baddie?’ So here I am as Abanazar.”
Jimmy, 54, grew up watching variety shows including Andy Williams’s TV show and, to him, panto felt natural.
He said: “I worked with people like Lucille Ball and Bob Hope and Milton Berle. That style was very Vaudevillian.
“Since that’s gone on its way in America, I tell my friends what I do and they don’t get it. I say the closest thing to pantomime would be Shrek. It incorporates current music and hits you had and puts it into a well-known story. Once I tell them that, they get it.”
Jimmy’s wife Michelle and kids Sophia, 23, Zak, 21, Wyatt, 17 and Bella, 15 will join him in Aberdeen.
Jimmy said: “That’s one of the reasons that got me involved in pantomime. We’ve always had a fun Christmas memory and we love Christmases over here.”
Jimmy had the Christmas No1 in 1972 with Long Haired Lover From Liverpool when he was nine.
He has written the Awesome Possum Family Band children’s book to help kids build their self-esteem. Growing up in showbiz, he was left confused by people either criticising or liking him.
He said: “I wrote this little story on how to realise what you have is good enough.”
After panto, he’ll be touring with his own show Moon River & Me. He said: “You guys have always given me that amazing feeling that you accept me for who I am and not just because I’m one of a band that was popular in the past.”