Ipswich’s The New Wolsey Theatre will stgae a rock ‘n’ roll pantomime production of Dick Wittington and his Cat for this Christmas.
The actor-musician panto will run at the venue from 23 November 2023 – 20 January 2024.
A panto classic, Dick Whittington tells the story of a poor boy who travels to London with his pet cat in search of fame and fortune.
Dick Whittington will feature the return of 2022 Goldilocks panto favourites Elizabeth Rowe as Alice, Steve Simmonds – who cannot wait to be transformed from last year’s Dame into this year’s panto villain, King Rat – and Luke Thornton as Dick Whittington. They are joined by Olivia Bennett – Ensemble, Jordan Eskeisa – Ensemble, Max Kinder – Sarah the Dame, Janna May – Fairy/Pirate, Myles Miller – The Cat and Eloise Richardson – Ensemble.
The New Wolsey production will feature a collection of both contemporary and classic pop and rock ‘n’ roll songs, will be written by award-winning comedian, writer and composer, Vikki Stone (Hey Duggee, Romeo and Duet), and will be directed by the theatre’s award-winning Chief Executive/Artistic Director Douglas Rintoul.
The production has set and costume design by Emily Bestow, sound design by James Cook, musical direction by Dan De Cruz, lighting design by Mark Dymock, wardrobe supervision by Margaret Lock and choreography by Maggie Rawlinson.
Throughout the run will be audio described, British Sign Language (BSL) interpreted, captioned, relaxed/dementia-friendly and livestreamed performance options as well as pre-show touch tours.
Vikki Stone said: “I’m very excited about Dick in Ipswich this winter. I thought I was more mature than jokes like that, but it turns out I’m not. But in all seriousness, the New Wolsey has a wonderful tradition of rock ‘n’ roll pantos, and I’m very excited about my first show in the venue!”
Douglas Rintoul added: “It is such a privilege to take over the helm of the New Wolsey Theatre’s iconic and much-loved rock ‘n’ roll pantomime. Last year over 30,000 people came through the doors and I’m looking forward to reaching many more with Vikki Stone’s joyous and sparky take on this traditional tale. It’s a pleasure to be working with such a talented writer who is also passionate about the form and our audiences.”
For more information and tickets, visit www.wolseytheatre.co.uk.
