Wizard win for Yeovil Amateur Panto Society!
- samuelmallen
- 12 hours ago
- 3 min read
On Friday evening, instead of following the yellow brick road, the very talented people of Yeovil Amateur Pantomime Society followed the red carpet all the way up the winner's podium to receive Somerset’s most coveted pantomime prize — The Cinderella Trophy — for their dazzling performance of The Wizard of Oz.
Their triumph crowned a sparkling, sequinned and occasionally delightfully chaotic awards night, where nominations were announced to gasps, cheers and the odd theatrical “IT SHOULD’VE BEEN ME!”, before winners swept to the stage faster than you can click a pair of ruby slippers.
From every corner of Somerset they descended like a glitter-covered invading army. They came from Minehead in the west, Clevedon in the north, Wincanton in the east and Tatworth in the south — proving once and for all that no distance is too great when there’s the promise of applause, trophies and a decent helping of spuds.
The great and the gloriously over-the-top from the world of pantomime converged on the Batch Country House at Lympsham for the annual extravaganza that is the absolute pinnacle of the panto calendar: the Cinderella Trophy Awards Ceremony. Or, as some call it, “The Oscars, but with more sequins and fewer security guards.”
Gone were the frocks bought by the dames for a ridiculous figure. No more were audiences in danger of being startled by ghosts sneaking up behind them shouting “He’s behind you!” at inappropriate moments. Vanished too were the terrifying layers of green face paint, evil cackles and eyebrows drawn halfway to the hairline.
Instead, the guests arrived dripping in glamour, sophistication and enough sparkle to be seen from space. Fabulous frocks shimmered under the lights, shoes sparkled like disco balls and tuxedos were squeezed into with varying levels of optimism. For one glorious evening, everyone looked less like amateur dramatics and more like celebrities who’d accidentally taken a wrong turn on the way to a BAFTA afterparty.
This year’s competition attracted twenty-nine entries — a triumphant return to pre-Covid numbers — and twenty-eight of those societies were represented on Friday evening, gathering together to enjoy a magnificent feast, down the odd glass of wine, and catch up with fellow Thespians from across the county.
It was a real delight to see Pam and Roger Price, the competition coordinator and her hard-working co-collaborator husband, attending the ceremony just weeks after having been involved in a serious road traffic accident and suffering serious back injuries. Moderator Nigel Ford welcomed them profusely and thanked everyone who had stepped into the breach to ensure the competition went ahead. He gave special mention to the enormous contributions of Georgina Barry and Justine Sturman.
And then came the awards. It was a bumper year for entries and the standards were so high that some categories had multiple nominations. Before supper, the junior accolades were announced. And the standards were so consistently good this year that the adjudicating team couldn't differentiate between the Junior Groups and pronounced them all worthy winners! You can see all the junior nominations and winners here.
After a hearty meal, and an even heartier chat we moved on to the senior awards, culminating in the big accolades. The winner of the Bradford Trophy - the best performance of 16 and under - was Lily Gurung for her portrayal of Dorothy in Strode Theatre's Wizard of Oz. And the Eddie Bowker Trophy for best overall performance went to Toby Weech as the villainous Sheriff of Nottingham in Somerton Drama's Robin Hood.
After the fun-filled Mad Hatter's raffle, Nigel Ford presented a special award to Timsbury Theatre Group for their commendable improvement and development since he last saw them two years ago.
And then the top society awards were announced: The Pint Pot Award (for a big performance on a small stage) went to Cloverleaf Productions for their Hansel and Gretel. Runners up for the Spotlight Shield were Trull Players for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. Winners in this category were Somerton for Robin Hood.
The Cinderella Trophy runners-up were Muses TP, based in Weston-Super-Mare at St Judes Theatre, and the top award of the evening went to YAPS.
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