Past panto children invited to specially staged reunion event

Former child members of casts invited to celebrate revamp

Children of pantos past at Perth Theatre are being invited to reunite at a special preview performance of this year’s show.

As part of its reopening celebrations after an extensive £16.6 million restoration and redevelopment, bosses are looking for anyone who performed in any Perth panto as a member of the young cast to take in a special Aladdin show.

Theatre bosses say the performance will act as a thank-you to all those who have played a part in the venue’s history.

It will be followed by a post-show reception and Kids of Panto Past… and Present exhibition developed with the help of the Perth and Kinross Council’s archive team, who have been cataloguing the entire Perth Theatre archive.

Debra Salem, creative producer for community engagement for Horsecross Arts, the organisation behind Perth Concert Hall and Perth Theatre said: “Perth panto means a lot of things to a lot of people, but for the many youngsters that have volunteered as young cast members, being a Perth panto kid has been a particularly special experience.

“Over the last five months, a project to interview those with a story to tell about the theatre brought to light many former panto kids who talked very fondly of their experience and how much it meant to them.

“This inspired us to find a way to thank all the past panto kids for making Perth panto the institution it is.

“The reopening, after the extensive period of restoration and redevelopment, seemed the right time to celebrate with a reunion for all those young cast members who have been part of the panto experience.”

Past panto kid Sarah Antoniewicz (O’Flaherty) who was in the young cast from 1987 to 1991 and her daughter will have a special reason to celebrate this year, as Rosie is following in her mother’s footsteps by appearing in Aladdin, her first panto.

Keeping it in the family, Sarah’s brother Steve was also a panto regular in his youth.

Tickets to the Kids of Panto Past reunion event from 2pm on Thursday December 7 are free and limited to one per past panto child (16 and unders may have an accompanying adult).

To register, follow the Eventbrite link on the Aladdin page at horsecross.co.uk. Registration closes on Friday November 10.

The reopening... seemed the right time to celebrate with a reunion for all those young cast members who have been part of the panto experience

Picture: Kim Cessford. Panto generations: Rosie and Sarah O’Flaherty at Perth Theatre. Rosie is in the panto Aladdin and her mother was also in pantos when she was a child.