The Opening Nite Theatre Society (ONTS) presents its 12th annual Christmas Panto Extravaganza – Rumpelstiltskin – beginning Dec. 14 and running until Jan. 13.
Written every year by Camille Atebe, the ONTS Panto is based on the British traditional pantomime, in which a familiar fairy tale is retold using cross-dressing, popular music and the interference of a good and a bad fairy.
The show has the cross-dressing in a dame (a man playing the role of a woman, usually an older character), and the principal boy and principal girl are both played by women.
The music, all played live by musician Mark Humpage (with additional accompaniment by Sofya Bice, Petra Atebe and Les Hatklin) is a mash-up of popular tunes with the words changed around.
The meddling fairies who vie to influence the story are Fairy Nice (Jennie Bice) and Fairy Naughty (Camille Atebe).
This year Rumpelstiltskin does the right thing when he helps the poor pinecone sorter Eloise win the affections of the king by spinning straw into gold for her, but Fairy Naughty worms her way in and convinces him to ask for Eloise’s first born child as payment.
Will Fairy Nice manage to talk him out of it? Or will Eloise gain a kingdom but lose a child? Get your tickets now and find out.
Tickets are $15 for adults, $5 for children (ages 2-12) or $35 for a family of five, and are available at openingnitetheatre.com, ontstickets@hotmail.com, 604-826-6687 or at the door (33223 Railway Ave.) before the show.
Rumpelstiltskin runs Dec. 14-23 and Jan. 4-13, Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Theatre doors open an hour before the show.
