Open-air theatre stalwart Heartbreak Productions is to tackle its first live, online production: an original panto for grown-ups, Tinsel in my Pants.
Leamington Spa-based Heartbreak is able to mount the production thanks to £90,000 from Arts Council England’s cultural recovery fund.
Known for being unconventional, Heartbreak saw no reason to stage an ordinary panto, so the story follows Terri the theatre tech as she bah-humbugs her way through another Zoom quiz. She gets sucked into pantoland via a faulty signal and must find her way back, revisiting challenges while coping with dames, damsels and The Donald.
Heartbreak’s artistic director Peter Mimmack and Emma Hodgkinson, founder of Dripping Honey Poetry, came up with the script.
Mimmack said, “I’m really looking forward to getting stuck into a theatre project. Hopefully the joy of rehearsals, creativity and sharing will bring some lightness and laughter into living rooms across the UK.”
Maddy Kerr, Heartbreak’s executive director, added, “this year has been one of the most challenging in Heartbreak’s history and we’re very grateful still to be able to continue working in the industry we love with actors and arts professionals.”
Tinsel in my Pants is suitable for anyone aged 15 and above. It will be live-streamed on Saturday 9 January at 2:30 and 8PM and Sunday 10 January at 3 and 7:30PM.