There’s a Latin American twist to a traditional tale at the Theatre Chipping Norton this Christmas.
Cinderella at Theatre Chipping Norton is the perfect panto for Disney's Encanto-loving families as the fairytale is reimagined with Latin American music and dance - plus panto staples dames, singalongs, bad gags and free sweeties.
Cinderella is on now until Sunday January 14, 2024, at Theatre Chipping Norton, 2 Spring Street, Chipping Norton, OX7 5NL. Tickets are available from £19-£36 from https://www.chippingnortontheatre.com/whats-on/cinderella
With a majority Latin cast, Cinderella is full of life, colour and music and non-stop silliness.
John Terry, artistic director of Theatre Chipping Norton and writer and director of Cinderella, said: "This production of Cinderella feels like a real exploration of what a panto can be in 2023 – outward looking, multi-cultural, channelling artistic excellence from a huge diversity of creative people into the folk-form that is a pantomime."
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Actors, musicians and theatre-makers have come to Chipping Norton from at least 10 countries across Europe and Latin America to create the production.
Mr Terry said: "I have always found panto to be an incredibly generous and forgiving artform – it despises moderation and thrives on giddy, open-hearted celebration.
"With this production we hope to give all of the pantomime staples – dames, singalong songs, throwaway sweets, and of course, lots of wonderfully bad gags – a new and exciting twist."
In the small town of Santa Maria de las Orejas de Soplillo (St Maria with the Sticky Out Ears), Cinderella dreams of a new life away from her chores and awful stepmother.
Mr Terry's interpretation carries a strong but optimistic environmental theme with Cinderella’s fragile home in the rainforests of Latin America collapsing around her.
It is also a tale of confused and secret identities, with numerous characters pretending to be something other than what they are.
"Ultimately, our version shows authenticity – being who you really are – to be the key to happiness, alongside preserving and treasuring the world in which we live," said Mr Terry.
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The cast comprises Ainy Medina (Archie, ITV; Big Bad Mood, Jordan Stephens music video) as Cinderella and Renan Teodoro (Otto in Sin: A New Musical, The Other Palace; Anyone Can Whistle, Southwark Playhouse) as Buttons.
The music was written by Rebecca Applin and Eliane Correa.
The famous Chippy Panto which has been a staple Christmas event for generations of Oxfordshire families is now its 51st year.
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