South Shields theatre maker Wayne Miller is turning very naughty this summer when he writes, directs and plays in an adult summer panto in the town’s Armstrong Hall in August.
Produced by Walton-Gunn Productions, the panto gives a new twist to a classic tale which goes back to 1634 and possibly earlier. It is Sleeping Beauty, although, as this is an adult version, it had been renamed Sleeping with Beauty, a story which starts with a prick.
So it is very definitely a show for grown-ups, not children.
On the poster, Miller describes himself as “the North East’s least known panto star”, but in fact he has more than twenty years of experience in the genre, both on tour and in theatres. In this show, he returns to playing Dame—Dame Hussy Harlot, a name which, like the names of the other characters, says something about what she (and they) are like.
He is joined in the cast by Ben Storey as Prince Phallus, Lucy Marie Curry as Princess Allure, Glen Richard Townsend as Dense Derick, Nigel Collins as Noxious Nigel and Stephen Sullivan as Gannabee Hellon.
Sleeping with Beauty runs at The Armstrong Hall on 24 and 25 August at 8:00. Tickets, from £12, available online from Ticketsource.