The nominations for The Great British Pantomime Awards 2018 have been announced and there is plenty of local interest in these National Awards. Richard David-Caine, who played Herman the Henchman in the Pavilion Theatre, Worthing’s superb pantomime, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, has been shortlisted for the title of Best Supporting Male. The Hawth. Crawley’s favourite dame, Michael J Batchelor, has been nominated for his amazing costumes, used all over the country, and Eastbourne’s very own Jordan Productions have been nominated for Best Choreography for Twist & Pulse and Best Comic for Aidan O’Neill, both for Jack & The Beanstalk at the Gordon Craig Theatre, Stevenage.
Established in 2016 the awards were introduced as a way to celebrate pantomime, where judges travel across the UK to see over 200 shows and nominate awards for best production values and performers. Following a fantastically busy season, The Great British Pantomime Awards are pleased to once again recognise and reward the great effort which goes into the Pantomime season right across the country.
Sam Munday-Webb, co-founder said ‘‘We knew that it was never going to be an easy job to see and judge such a vast array of productions in such a short amount of time. Since we launched in 2016 we have been very lucky to have the industry behind us supporting the awards. They are being seen as something incredibly positive and filling a gap in our industry. We want pantomime makers to aspire to innovate as well as celebrate the wonderful traditions we have seen up and down the country”.
There are over 20 awards up for grabs, including: Best Comic, Best Male and Female Baddie, Best Ensemble as well as awards for Lighting, Design and Direction.
Co-founder Daniel Dawson said “Judges saw well in excess of 200 shows with up to 6 judges seeing each show. The variety of talent that we have seen has made it clear that pantomime is as alive as ever. With so many talented actors, so well supported by back of house teams, it has made decisions very difficult, but that can only be good for the future of Pantomime.”
Jordan Productions said “We’re delighted to be nominated again in this year’s Great British Pantomime Awards following Tom Lister’s win for Best Baddie in our Stevenage production of Peter Pan last year. It’s great to be involved in these awards which recognise this huge part of the UK theatre scene,”
Michael J Batchelor, currently starring in an Easter pantomime, said, “I have designed and made my own panto dame costumes for many years and in the last few years I have had my costumes worn by some of the best dames in the country. This has lead to my costume design nomination for The Great British Pantomime Awards. The awards are in their second year now and it’s brilliant that all aspects of pantomime are being celebrated in this way. Some people in the theatre world look down on pantomime but it is during the festive season, that a lot of venues make the most money, allowing other types of productions to take place throughout the year! I’m very passionate about the art of playing a fat bloke in a dress and seem to have made my Christmas home at the Hawth Theatre in recent years! I am as excited as ever for Aladdin this year and sewing has already begun!”
On behalf of Richard David-Caine, Amanda O’Reilly, Head of Culture for Adur & Worthing Councils, says “Richard has always been a brilliant performer, when we first cast him in Jack Frost three years ago he was so popular with our family audiences; we were keen to get him back on the stage in Worthing for Snow White. He brought amazing comedy value as Herman the Henchman, and as a regular on CBeebies alongside his Swashbuckle partner Joseph Elliot, they made the perfect combination for the show. We’re so pleased to hear he has been nominated for a national award and wish him lots of luck ahead of the winners being selected.”
The winners will be announced and awards will be presented at Wimbledon Theatre on Sunday 15th April 2018 and will be presented by Christopher Biggins, last year’s Lifetime Achievement Award Winner, who will be joined by other guests from Pantomime and beyond to celebrate the season. The last of the Dress and Upper Circle seats for the awards ceremony have now been released and are available online at gbpa.co.uk/book
