Panto Come Home!

Streamed live from the York Theatre:
December 22 and 26 at 2PM
December 23 and 26 at 7PM
December 20 and 27 at noon
Tickets from $35 at 604-251-1363 or thecultch.com

Posted December 20, 2020

Here’s a Christmas present you can open right now! Theatre Replacement has moved back into the York Theatre with what has become a wildly popular Vancouver Christmas tradition presented by Theatre Replacement and The Cultch since 2013: the East Van Panto. It’s pared down a little but some of the old gang are there: James Long, Maiko Yamamoto, Donna Soares, Shawn Macdonald, Dawn Petten, Amanda Sum, Mark Chavez (writer and performer) and Veda Hille on keyboards with Barry Mirochnick on drums.

We feared this year’s panto would simply be a reprise of old songs, old costumes and old gags. Not so! Now there are some Covid-19 inspired new songs as well as some of the faves from previous years. Pick of the new litter is, to the tune of Sweet Caroline,
“Hands/We’re washing hands/Reaching out/But don’t touch me/I won’t touch you.”

The fun all begins with Hille, uncharacteristically underdressed for the occasion – she’s in her pyjamas – singing a melancholy little tune about the virus before doing a weary face-plant on the keyboard. Seems she’s been hanging out in the York Theatre mourning what seemed inevitable: no 2020 panto. Long and Yamamoto arrive on the scene and, worried about Hille’s state of mind, they summon some performers, drag out a pile of old scripts and set about cheering Hille up.

Not so fast. Arriving with a descending chandelier and a Beethoven-ish boom, is the Phanto of the Panto. It’s clear – because “he makes thunder happen and he’s dangerous” – that he will be calling the shots. This year, he declares imperiously, the panto will be the little-known Grimm’s tale The Mouse, The Bird and The Sausage. And yes, Barb Clayden and Alaia Hamer can rejig costumes from the past to fit the bill, resources being what they are (or aren’t).  A hot dog costumes can be duct taped up and pass for The Sausage; Cinderella can don mouse ears; and the rubbery chicken from a past year will have to suffice for The Bird.

It’s off to a bit of a slow start but once going, it’s a lot of fun.

A running gag is that Amanda Sum is the only millennial (“I’m a triple threat: I can sing. I can dance. And I’m a millennial”) amidst the now slightly older Theatre Replacement folk. However, some of the music – to which Hille has written new words – is contemporary to the extent that it will leave some grandparents and even some parents in the online audience in the dark. It doesn’t matter. It rocks, the lyrics are amazing and “Somewhere, just east of Main Street”(Over The Rainbow) and “Randolph The Average Reindeer” brings us oldsters back into the fold.

What really makes this panto is the exuberance and unstoppable enthusiasm of the performers and crew. Two camera operators rush from the two fixed cameras while juggling three video cams. Lighting designer Sophie Tan splashes light all over the place or pinpricks individuals out in spotlight; it looks great. Amanda Testini’s choreography is super-animated. And, naturally, the music and lyrics are fantastic. Imagine how “Cozy up in bubbles tight” or “good time” with “online” is worked into the tune of Silent Night.

Panto Come Home! is a brightly packaged hour and a bit of  good cheer, good wishes and hope for a better 2021. It explodes with optimism. Even the Phanto admits all he really wants is “to laugh and to feel and spread joy throughout the world”. Who knew?

All that’s missing is a live audience – oh, there’s Carl sitting in the third row and don’t miss out on the Zoom after-party (it’s a hoot) – but as Petten says, she’s been in countless shows with no audience; it’s called, she says, “Doing theatre”.

Funny, I think I missed the live audience as much as the performers do; there’s that something in the air, the boos and cheers, the excited shout-outs from kids – “ Look behind you!”. But I’m so grateful that Theatre Replacement and The Cultch didn’t give up in the face of the pandemic. You can always do your own booing and cheering and your bubble could include a glass of bubbly. Hey, you’re not going anywhere, right?

So make your own audience. Invite the Panto into your own home. Do the “Let’s Do The Panto Again” dance.  All together now, (to the tune of Christmas Time in the City): “Pantomime/Wintertime/Let’s all sing nonsense together”.

Thank you, thank you Theatre Replacement and The Cultch for the generous gift of laughter. I love it!