Putting the finishing touches to fun-filled Ripon panto

Ripon Charity Pantomime Group are putting the finishing touches to their slapstick comedy panto performances of Dick Whittington which at will be Outwood Academy until Saturday (January 20).
The cast of a previous pantomimeThe cast of a previous pantomime
The cast of a previous pantomime

The performances showcase local talent who will provide a night of fun-filled entertainment for all the family.

Tickets are on sale now at Stuff 4 Offices on Fishergate in Ripon and there will also be a limited number of tickets available just before the shows on each night at Outwood Academy on Clotherholme Road in Ripon with tickets costing £8 for adults and £6 for children and OAP’s.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Chris Scott, producer, said: “Many of the cast have been entertaining audiences with Ripon Charity Pantomime Group for a good many years, playing the traditional panto roles of the dame, the baddy and the comedians, which are essential to panto but the cast also includes a chorus of 20 children aged from eight to 16 who have been perfecting their dance moves to the upbeat songs chosen specially for this year’s pantomime to get you tapping your feet and singing along.”

Chris, who was the Dame in last year’s Ripon panto has been producer, musical director or actor in numerous pantomimes since 2005, and has played various parts including the dame and other comical roles.

In this story, Dick Whittington (Beth Edwards) comes to London to seek his fortune, only to find rat-infested squalor. Dick meets and teams up with a cat (Katie Plunkett), and they try to stop a gang of rats stealing the city’s treasures, kept in a safe by Alderman Fitzwarren (Mike Spurgeon), his daughter, Alice (Sophie McCudden) and her au pair, Dusty Buster (Ryan Stocks).

They encounter the ineffectual Mayor of London and his PR Guru (Jake England & Serena Bean), but fail to rescue the treasure in time for a visit by the Sultan and Sultana of Morocco (Joshua Houseman & Abbie Pearce). Dick finds himself banished from London and his cat is taken to Morocco.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Meanwhile, the rats, led by King Rat (Ian Holloway), try to take over London. They defeat the Mayor and King Rat assumes power, throwing Dusty in jail. Dick needs to stay in London, rescue Dusty, defeat King Rat, make his fortune, get his cat back and win the heart of Alice!

The panto raises money for local causes and charities and last year the profits were shared out between the Ripon Walled Garden, Ripon Community Link, Ripon Citizen’s Advice, Ripon Swimming Club, Scuba Diving for All, H.A.P.P.Y (hedgehog rescue for redecoration of new hogspital), Ripon Rural Well-being service (helping over 65 elderly and vulnerable at home) and World Challenge (volunteering expeditions for local students).

Related topics: