Pantomime

In Great Britain and Australia, Pantomime refers to a type of theatrical performance.

In Restoration England, a pantomime was a low form of opera, rather like the Commedia dell'arte but without Harlequin developed (rather like the French Vaudeville).

In 1717, John Rich introduced Harlequin to the British stage under the name of "Lun" (for "lunatic") and began performing wildly popular pantomimes.

These pantomimes gradually became more topical and comic, often involving as many special theatrical effects as possible.

Colley Cibber and his colleagues competed with Rich and produced their own pantomimes, and pantomime was a substantial (if decried) subgenre in Augustan drama.

This had virtually died out by the end of the 19th century.

What remains of British pantomime (or panto) is a non-silent form of theatre, incorporating song, dance, buffoonery, and satire, traditionally performed at Christmas, with audiences consisting mainly of children.

Pantomimes tend to be loosely based on traditional children's stories, and there are only a small number of basic themes and titles, the most popular being:

• Aladdin (combined with Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves)

• Babes in the Wood (often combined with Robin Hood)

• Cinderella

• Dick Whittington

• Jack and the Beanstalk

• Mother Goose

• Puss in Boots

• Sleeping Beauty

• Goldilocks and the Three Bears

• Snow White

The form has a number of conventions, which include:

• The leading male character (the "principal boy") is played by a young woman.

• An older woman (the pantomime dame) is played by a man in women's clothing.

• Risqué double entendre, often to the point of wringing innuendo out of perfectly innocent phrases.

• There is a great deal of audience participation, including calls of "he's behind you", and "oh yes it is" or "oh no it isn't".

• The pantomime horse or cow, which is played by two actors in a single costume – one as the head and front legs, the other as the body and back legs.

In both style and content, modern panto has very clear and strong links with Commedia dell'arte — a form of popular theatre arising in the early middle ages in Italy and reaching England by 16th century, while the gender role reversal resembles the old festival of Twelfth Night, a combination Epiphany and midwinter feast when it was customary for the natural order of things to be reversed.

This tradition can be traced back to pre-Christian European festivals such as Samhain and Saturnalia.

Another great UK panto tradition is the celebrity guest star, a practice which dates back to the late 19th century, when Augustus Harris, proprietor of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, hired well-known variety artistes for his pantomimes.

In modern times, the "celebrity" is usually somebody of doubtful value either as an actor or even as a publicity draw -- an ex-soap star trying to shore up a slipping career, for instance -- but occasionally a pantomime will feature a genuine celebrity, as with the Christmas 2004 production of Aladdin that featured Sir Ian McKellen as Widow Twankey.

(McKellen has become hugely famous with children as Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings and Magneto in X-Men.)

"At least we can tell our grandchildren that we saw McKellen's Twankey and it was huge." – Michael Billington, theatre critic of The Guardian, December 20, 2004.

In Great Britain and Australia, Pantomime refers to a type of theatrical performance. In Restoration England, a pantomime was a low form of opera, rather like the Commedia dell'arte but without Harlequin developed (rather like the French Vaudeville). In 1717, John Rich introduced Harlequin to the British stage under the name of "Lun" (for "lunatic") and began performing wildly popular pantomimes. These pantomimes gradually became more topical and comic, often involving as many special theatrical effects as possible. Colley Cibber and his colleagues competed with Rich and produced their own pantomimes, and pantomime was a substantial (if decried) subgenre in Augustan drama. This had virtually died out by the end of the 19th century. What remains of British pantomime (or panto) is a non-silent form of theatre, incorporating song, dance, buffoonery, and satire, traditionally performed at Christmas, with audiences consisting mainly of children. Pantomimes tend to be loosely based on traditional children's stories, and there are only a small number of basic themes and titles, the most popular being: • Aladdin (combined with Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves) • Babes in the Wood (often combined with Robin Hood) • Cinderella • Dick Whittington • Jack and the Beanstalk • Mother Goose • Puss in Boots • Sleeping Beauty • Goldilocks and the Three Bears • Snow White The form has a number of conventions, which include: • The leading male character (the "principal boy") is played by a young woman. • An older woman (the pantomime dame) is played by a man in women's clothing. • Risqué double entendre, often to the point of wringing innuendo out of perfectly innocent phrases. • There is a great deal of audience participation, including calls of "he's behind you", and "oh yes it is" or "oh no it isn't". • The pantomime horse or cow, which is played by two actors in a single costume – one as the head and front legs, the other as the body and back legs. In both style and content, modern panto has very clear and strong links with Commedia dell'arte — a form of popular theatre arising in the early middle ages in Italy and reaching England by 16th century, while the gender role reversal resembles the old festival of Twelfth Night, a combination Epiphany and midwinter feast when it was customary for the natural order of things to be reversed. This tradition can be traced back to pre-Christian European festivals such as Samhain and Saturnalia. Another great UK panto tradition is the celebrity guest star, a practice which dates back to the late 19th century, when Augustus Harris, proprietor of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, hired well-known variety artistes for his pantomimes. In modern times, the "celebrity" is usually somebody of doubtful value either as an actor or even as a publicity draw -- an ex-soap star trying to shore up a slipping career, for instance -- but occasionally a pantomime will feature a genuine celebrity, as with the Christmas 2004 production of Aladdin that featured Sir Ian McKellen as Widow Twankey. (McKellen has become hugely famous with children as Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings and Magneto in X-Men.) "At least we can tell our grandchildren that we saw McKellen's Twankey and it was huge." – Michael Billington, theatre critic of The Guardian, December 20, 2004. °	In Great Britain and Australia, Pantomime refers to a type of theatrical performance.	In Gran Bretagna e Australia la parola pantomima si riferisce ad un determinato tipo di spettacolo teatrale.
	In Restoration England, a pantomime was a low form of opera, rather like the Commedia dell'arte but without Harlequin developed (rather like the French Vaudeville).	Nell'Inghilterra della Restaurazione, una pantomima era una forma "bassa" di opera, simile alla Commedia dell'arte ma senza Arlecchino (più o meno come il vaudeville francese).
	In 1717, John Rich introduced Harlequin to the British stage under the name of "Lun" (for "lunatic") and began performing wildly popular pantomimes.	Nel 1717 John Rich introdusse Arlecchino sul palcoscenico britannico sotto il nome di "Lun" (abbreviazione di "pazzo") e cominciò a inscenare delle pantomime che divennero estremamente popolari.
	These pantomimes gradually became more topical and comic, often involving as many special theatrical effects as possible.	Queste pantomime divennero sempre più popolari e sempre più basate sulla comicità e comportavano spesso il numero più grande possibile di effetti scenici speciali.
	Colley Cibber and his colleagues competed with Rich and produced their own pantomimes, and pantomime was a substantial (if decried) subgenre in Augustan drama.	Colley Cibber ed i suoi colleghi entrarono in competizione con Rich e produssero le loro proprie pantomime, e la pantomima fu un importante, anche se vituperato, sottogenere del dramma augusteo.*
	This had virtually died out by the end of the 19th century.	Il genere della pantomima si estinse virtualmente alla fine del 19° secolo.
	What remains of British pantomime (or panto) is a non-silent form of theatre, incorporating song, dance, buffoonery, and satire, traditionally performed at Christmas, with audiences consisting mainly of children.	Ciò che rimane della pantomima inglese (sovente abbreviata in "panto") è una forma parlata di teatro che incorpora canzone, ballo, buffoneria e satira, tradizionalmente rappresentate a Natale e con un pubblico che consiste principalmente di bambini.
	Pantomimes tend to be loosely based on traditional children's stories, and there are only a small number of basic themes and titles, the most popular being:	Le pantomime tendono ad essere basate liberamente sulle favole per bambini tradizionali ed esiste solo un ristretto numero di temi base e di titoli. I più popolari sono:
	• Aladdin (combined with Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves)	• Aladino (abbinato ad Alì Babà ed i Quaranta Ladroni)
	• Babes in the Wood (often combined with Robin Hood)	• I fanciulli nella foresta (spesso abbinato a Robin Hood)
	• Cinderella	• Cenerentola
	• Dick Whittington	• Dick Whittington
	• Jack and the Beanstalk	• Jack e la pianta di fagioli
	• Mother Goose	• Mamma Oca
	• Puss in Boots	• Il Gatto con gli Stivali
	• Sleeping Beauty	• La Bella Addormentata nel Bosco
	• Goldilocks and the Three Bears	• Goldilocks (Ranuncolo) ed i Tre Orsi
	• Snow White	• Biancaneve
	The form has a number of conventions, which include:	Questo genere ha un certo numero di convenzioni che comprendono:
	• The leading male character (the "principal boy") is played by a young woman.	• Il personaggio maschile principale (il cosiddetto "eroe") è interpretato da una ragazza.
	• An older woman (the pantomime dame) is played by a man in women's clothing.	• La donna anziana (la "dama" della pantomima) è interpretata da un uomo vestito in abito da donna.
	• Risqué double entendre, often to the point of wringing innuendo out of perfectly innocent phrases.	• Doppi sensi arrischiati, spesso al punto da tirar fuori allusioni da frasi assolutamente innocenti.
	• There is a great deal of audience participation, including calls of "he's behind you", and "oh yes it is" or "oh no it isn't".	• C'è molta partecipazione da parte del pubblico, con esclamazioni tipo "è dietro di te", e "eh sì!" oppure "eh no!".
	• The pantomime horse or cow, which is played by two actors in a single costume – one as the head and front legs, the other as the body and back legs.	• Il cavallo o la mucca della pantomima, interpretati da due attori inseriti in un unico costume - il primo che rappresenta la testa e le gambe anteriori, e il secondo che rappresenta il corpo ed le gambe posteriori.
	In both style and content, modern panto has very clear and strong links with Commedia dell'arte — a form of popular theatre arising in the early middle ages in Italy and reaching England by 16th century, while the gender role reversal resembles the old festival of Twelfth Night, a combination Epiphany and midwinter feast when it was customary for the natural order of things to be reversed.	Sia nello stile che nei contenuti la pantomima moderna ha dei collegamenti molto chiari e forti con la Commedia dell'arte - una forma di teatro popolare che nacque agli inizi del Medio Evo in Italia ed arrivò in Inghilterra con il 16° secolo, mentre l'inversione di ruolo maschile/femminile ricorda la vecchia festività della Dodicesima Notte, una combinazione di Epifania e Festa di pieno inverno* quando era consueto che il naturale ordine delle cose fosse invertito.
	This tradition can be traced back to pre-Christian European festivals such as Samhain and Saturnalia.	Questa tradizione può esser fatta risalire alle festività europee pre-cristiane come Samhain e Saturnalia.
	Another great UK panto tradition is the celebrity guest star, a practice which dates back to the late 19th century, when Augustus Harris, proprietor of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, hired well-known variety artistes for his pantomimes.	Un'altra grande tradizione della pantomima britannica è l'ospite celebre, una pratica risalente alla fine del 19° secolo quando Augustus Harris, proprietario del Teatro Reale, Drury Lane, ingaggiò per le sue pantomime dei famosi artisti del varietà.
	In modern times, the "celebrity" is usually somebody of doubtful value either as an actor or even as a publicity draw -- an ex-soap star trying to shore up a slipping career, for instance -- but occasionally a pantomime will feature a genuine celebrity, as with the Christmas 2004 production of Aladdin that featured Sir Ian McKellen as Widow Twankey.	Ai giorni nostri, il "personaggio celebre" è di solito qualcuno di dubbia importanza come attore o beniamino degli spot pubblicitari - per esempio un'ex stella di soap-opera che cerca di tenere in piedi una carriera che sta andando a finire - ma di quando in quando una pantomima riesce a presentare un personaggio davvero famoso, come nella produzione del natale 2004 di Aladino che vide Sir Ian McKellen nei panni della Vedova Twankey.
	(McKellen has become hugely famous with children as Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings and Magneto in X-Men.)	(McKellen è diventato famosissimo presso il pubblico dei bambini come Gandalf nel Signore degli Anelli e come Magneto in X-Men.)
	"At least we can tell our grandchildren that we saw McKellen's Twankey and it was huge." – Michael Billington, theatre critic of The Guardian, December 20, 2004.	"Almeno potremo dire ai nostri nipotini che abbiamo visto il Twankey di McKellen e che era formidabile." - Parole di Michael Billington, critico teatrale del Guardian scritte il 20 dicembre 2004.