Rumpelstiltskin does the deal at Draycott

By Sam Allen

The journey from Taunton to Draycott is a bit of a schlep at the best of times but when a diesel spill on the M5 results in traffic being diverted through Bridgwater and Highbridge, adding a good thirty minutes to the journey on a dark and dreary February night, the question that inevitably pops into the mind of even this most ardent pantomime aficionado is: Is it all worth it?

This was my first trip to the Draycott Memorial Hall, a splendid facility built about twenty-five years ago and boasting a great stage and spacious hall that allowed for generous legroom, which is not always the case! It was also my first ever Rumpelstiltskin pantomime and, to be honest, I had no idea what to expect. It is always lovely, nevertheless, to see something new and different in the world of pantomime so I was really looking forward to it.

The Mendip Players started in 2006 in the village of Draycott near Cheddar. With a population a little over 1,000 people, the drama group is a shining example of community theatre bringing together people of all ages, backgrounds, skills and abilities. It is great reading the programme and seeing the same surnames appear several times as whole families become involved in the joys of amateur drama.

And it was clear that this was a real team effort as we enjoyed the most splendid costumes created by a great wardrobe team with help from all the cast and crew. The very same cast and crew members who help create the great sets that made this a very colourful production as we moved swiftly from scene to scene, all embellished by some great lighting. Add to that the slick scene changes that kept the action running along at a pleasing pace and you have a real sense of teamwork at play.

The same goes for the players on stage. With super support from the junior and senior choruses, the cast took us through the full pantomime repertoire with a real slosh custard pie scene, ‘behind you’ shenanigans, lots of audience interplay, a touch of romance and the inevitable conflict between good and evil, all the traditions of the panto genre were firmly in place. Oh yes! We had some old favourite songs, a lot of comedy, and plenty of mythology to enthral the kids. Amateur panto just as it should be!

In an interesting plot, Rumpelstiltskin likes a deal! And whereas Sleeping Beauty may feature a spinning wheel, in this story we have two! In an increasingly frenetic race that eventually ends up with our heroine, Rosa, spinning gold, having been tutored by the unlikely hero, Prince Roland. And the villain of the piece is not content with two henchmen, he has four: Hubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble! But I think my favourite name was the Imp called Hillman. You may have to be a certain age to get that one! This was a storyline with lots of fun including a good fairy, Laura Norder, who was determined to keep the peace dressed in another pantomime first for me: a police officer fairy costume!

This may have been my first visit to the Mendip Players but I certainly hope it’s not my last. And to answer that initial question, was it all worth it? It most certainly was!