Peter Pan
by Dave Ayres
17th - 26th January 2020
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Join Wendy, Join and Michael as they fly to Neverland with Peter Pan to thwart the evil plans of Captain Hook in J.M. Barrie's timeless tale adapted for pantomime by Dave Ayres.
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Ben Hur
by Patrick Barlow
12th - 14th April 2019
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Written by the Olivier and Tony Award-winning author of A Christmas Carol and The 39 Steps.
They said it was unachievable... They said it couldn't be done... But now, the greatest book ever penned is brought to the stage by a towering team of just 5 actors - turning the Little Theatre into one of the most authentic versions of Ancient Rome ever seen.
A decadent and unexpurgated Roman orgy (suitable for all ages)! An authentic sea battle (with REAL water)! A 103% bona fide chariot race (with REAL chariots) Stunning combat (featuring the latest 3D technology)! Ben Hur is the epic to stir your very soul!
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Beauty and the Beast
by Dave Ayres
18th - 20th, 24th, 25th, 27th January 2019
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For the Idle and Thackley's 30th Annual Pantomime we returned to France and the timeless tale of Beauty and the Beast.
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Amdram is Murder
by Karen Ince
28th - 29th April 2018
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The Marchfield Amateur Drama (MAD), a community theatre group, are rehearsing, of all things, a murder mystery, when suddenly their lives are taken over by a murder.
Eye-witnesses come forward and the suspects are identified and interrogated by the audience who try to spot the murderer. Join us for an evening of murder and mystery and solve the puzzle of who is the murderer - and why the crime was committed. Prizes for the most correct, and the most imaginative, solutions. |
Aladdin
by Dave Ayres
1st - 10th December 2017
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In 2017, for our 29th Annual Pantomime, we presented a new interpretation, written by member David Ayres, of the old family favourite pantomime, Aladdin.
Read a review from the Bradford Telegraph and Argus. |
Blackadder III
by Richard Curtis & Ben Elton
7.30 pm, 22nd - 25th June 2017
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Regency London. Whilst King George III talks to the flora and ends his sentences with the word 'penguin', his son, the future King George IV, is Prince Regent. Widely regarded as the most stupid man in London, Prince George is arrogant and foppish with a passion for socks, enormous trousers and women of negotiable virtue.
Assisted and thwarted in roughly equal measure by his butler, Edmund Blackadder, and his dogsbody Baldrick, the Prince aims to better himself through literary patronage, increase his popularity through public speaking and swell his finances through a propitious marriage before spending a potentially fatal evening of passion with a pair of Wellingtons. |
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
by Dave Ayres
21, 22, 25-29th January 2017
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This year for our 28th Annual Pantomime we presented a new interpretation, written by member David Ayres, of the gothic Parisian tale, The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Based on the Victor Hugo novel, it recalls the story of Quasimodo and Esmerelda as they defy evil Judge Claude Frollo in pursuit of acceptance.
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Who Killed the Holiday Rep?
23rd and 24th September 2016
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It’s Monday August 7th 1989 and while Britain shivers on its wind-battered beaches the tourist season is at its peak in Benidorm. Sweltering days give way to sultry evenings and as the sun dips slowly over the Mediterranean there’s a collective appetite for sangria, paella… and also, for murder!
Join us for an evening of murder and mystery (in 1980s Spanish holiday attire if you wish) and solve the puzzle of who killed the holiday rep. Prizes for the most correct, and the most imaginative, solutions. Supper is included in the price of the ticket and will be served during the show. Table ticket includes complimentary jug of sangria or mocktail. A licensed cash bar is available. |
Blackadder II
by Richard Curtis and Ben Elton
6th - 9th April 2016
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Tudor England. Queen Elizabeth, the Virgin Queen, cuts a frustrated figure as she tries to lose the sobriquet whilst courtiers aim to gain her favour without losing their heads. Lord Edmund Blackadder, a minor noble with ideas above his station, is no exception as he seeks to increase his standing in court and swell the size of his purse. Ably hindered by Baldrick, the worst servant in London, and Lord Percy Percy, intellectually challenged heir to the Duchy of Northumberland, will he succeed in sidestepping the Queen's advisor, Lord Melchett, and fulfil his ambitions?
Read a review by Judith Smith at the NODA website.
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Robin Hood
and the Babes in the Wood
3rd - 13th December 2015
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Maid Marion, Robin Hood and his Merry Men try to thwart the evil machinations of the Sheriff of Nottingham in this new panto adaptation by Dave Ayres.
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The Vicar of Dibley II - Love is in the Air
by Richard Curtis and Paul Mayhew-Archer
9th - 12th September 2015
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Richard Curtis' award-winning TV comedy returned to The Little Theatre in a new adaptation for the stage by Bob Cochrane and Alyson Hunter which takes up the story from where we left the characters in our 2013 production.
It's Spring in Dibley and love is definitely in the air. After 26 years, will Hugo and Alice's relationship progress beyond shaking hands? Will Geraldine find true love - or at least an alternative to Owen's advances - which rivals her relationship with Dairy Milk? Will Mrs Cropley finally get the recognition she deserves as a pioneer of molecular gastroenteritis? Read a review by Judith Smith at the NODA website.
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Beauty and the Beast
5th - 14th December 2014
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“Beauty comes from within, no matter what any of us look like...”
For their 26th annual pantomine, the Idle and Thackley Theatre Group present a brand new version of the classic fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast. Join Rocquel, the castle gargoyle, as she tells the story of Belle and the Beast, and how true love can transform even the scariest monster back into a prince. Joined on their journey by a crazy cast of characters, including Miss Coffey the castle maid, Bouton the servant, Smyth the castle guard, and the evil Lemal, this panto is filled with songs, dances, jokes and slapstick, which will delight audience members both young and old. Read a review by Judith Smith at the NODA website.
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Blackadder Goes Forth
by Richard Curtis and Ben Elton
24th – 28th June 2014
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"A war hasn't been fought this badly since Olaf the Hairy, High Chief of all the Vikings, accidentally ordered 80,000 battle helmets with the horns on the inside."
It's 1917 in a trench near Passchendaele: Capt. Edmund Blackadder, Lt. the Hon. George Colthurst St Barleigh and Pte S. Baldrick await Gen. Sir Anthony Cecil Hogmanay Melchett's invitation to join the 'big push' to "advance Field Marshall Haig's cocktail cabinet six inches closer to Berlin". The three men view the prospect very differently. For George, this is an opportunity to put the skills learned on the playing fields of Eton into practice "to give Harry Hun a darn good British-style thrashing, six o' the best, trousers down!" For Baldrick, it's a terrifying experience which he is not looking forward to. For Captain Blackadder it's something to be avoided at all costs with the assistance of a succession of ever more cunning plans. Read reviews of this show by Pam Booth at the NODA website and Catherine Anne Hulme at the West Yorkshire Theatre Network website.
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The Odd Couple - Female Version
by Neil Simon
22nd - 25th April 2014
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Unger and Madison are at it again! Florence Unger and Olive Madison, that is, in Neil Simon's hilarious contemporary comic classic: the female version of The Odd Couple. Instead of the poker party that begins the original version, Ms. Madison has invited the girls over for an evening of Trivial Pursuit. The Pidgeon sisters have been replaced by the two Constanzuela brothers. But the hilarity remains the same.
Read a review by Judith Smith at the NODA website.
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Cinderella
10th - 14th December 2013
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Our 25th Annual Pantomime was the much loved story of Cinderella.
Read a review by Judith Smith at the NODA website. |
The Vicar of Dibley
by Richard Curtis and Paul Mayhew-Archer
12th - 14th September 2013
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Richard Curtis' award-winning TV comedy in a hilarious new adaptation for the stage by Alyson Hunter and Bob Cochrane. When the long serving vicar of Dibley, Reverend Pottle, dies during Sunday Service, the replacement appointed by the Bishop of Wykeham, Geraldine Granger, splits local opinion. Shortly afterwards the stained glass window of St Barnabus' Church is shattered in a storm and Geraldine realises she will have to use all her charm and ingenuity to win over the eccentric locals and, with their assistance, raise the money to replace it.
Read a review by Judith Smith at the NODA website. |
Blithe Spirit
by Noel Coward
19th - 22nd June 2013
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Socialite and novelist Charles Condomine lives a reasonably contented life in Kent with his second wife Ruth. One evening, as research for his forthcoming book, he invites local medium and clairvoyant Madame Arcati to conduct a séance at his home with has unforeseen consequences...
Read a review by Judith Smith at the NODA website. |
Little Red Riding Hood
by Emma Burton and Liam Hunter
8th - 15th December 2012
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A new pantomime loosely based on the classic European fairy tale, written by Idle and Thackley Theatre Group members Emma and Liam.
Directed by Richard Knowles. Read a review by Judith Smith at the NODA website. |
'Allo 'Allo
by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft
7th and 12th-14th July 2012
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The classic BBC comedy series parodying Secret Army and other wartime resistance dramas brought to the stage by Jeremy Lloyd and David Croft.
Directed by Emma Burton. Read a review by Judith Smith at the NODA website. |
Jack and the Beanstalk
27th January - 5th February 2012
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The classic pantomine where Jack saves his family from being cast out from their cottage with a little help from a giant's horde, a dancing cow and a handful of beans.
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Through the Years
6th - 8th October 2011
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A compilation of numbers from a century of musical theatre, from old favourites like Anything Goes, Oklahoma and Hello Dolly!, through Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and 42nd Street, to modern classics such as Miss Saigon, Blood Brothers and Rent.
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Billy Liar
by Keith Waterhouse and Willis Hall
11th - 12th May 2011
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Billy is a world famous poet, a celebrated thinker, a decorated soldier and a great lover. Unfortunately he is only any of these things in his imagination. He continually fantasizes his life away to avoid facing the more mundane truth of his life at home with his parents and grandmother, his engagement to Barbara and his job as an undertaker's clerk.
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Puss in Boots
February 2011
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Puss in Boots is a panto with plenty of jokes, great characters and fabulous singing and dancing for the audience to join in with. Join our Dame as she struggles to pay her increasing rent, but finds happiness when her son, thanks to a talking cat, falls in love with the princess, becomes the Marquie of Carabas and gains riches beyond their wildest dreams. Laugh as the village idiot Stewart Smallpiece entertains the audience with jokes and comedy scenes with a little help from Ivana Itch and Ida Scratchett and be enthralled as the Demon Wolf is overpowered by Fairy Mary.
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Thoroughly Modern Musicals
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A lively all singing and all dancing show which puts together your favourite numbers from contemporary musical theatre with a few you may not have heard before.
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Shakers
by John Godber and Jane Thornton
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It's the 80's and Shakers Cocktail Bar is the place to be after work. It’s a place where girls can meet guys, guys can meet girls, and, whether you’re celebrating or drowning your sorrows, the drink will flow. In John Godber’s sparkling comedy, four young waitresses in the bar reveal the lives of its staff and customers and offer an insight into their hopes, dreams and disappointments.
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Rokella
by Peter Aveyard and Alyson Hunter
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Rokella lives in Norveden at the edge of the Arctic circle. Norveden's only export is Dryvita a tasteless crisp bread made from cardboard. Rokella has a dream, to be a sh-tar but what chance does she have living in the far flung wastelands of Scandinavia?
Enter Hugh Rynal, impresario of the famous Shaft Lifters bar in the North of England. Rynal offers Rokella a chance to represent his club in this years Euro Idol Competition. She has the talent to succeed but no one counted on Das Underband the dastardly German electro nerds - hell bent on winning at all costs. |
Queen of the Air
by Peter Aveyard
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The story of aviatrix Amy Johnson’s struggle for equality in a man's world, and her love for her married mentor Jack.
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