CHRISTMAS SEASON

DECEMBER 26th 2022 to Jan Saturday 7th 2023

Well, we’ve just finished our October Half Term 2022, we finished on Bonfire Night. It was a rather disappointing season in one way since the Welsh and English School Holidays were on different weeks consequently instead of one week of of fullish houses we had some rather sparse days, particularly in the second week which was only local children, all the holidaymakers having gone home.

Nevertheless we had lots of laughter and many performers where the audience enthusiastically entered into the fun with lots of laughter and cheers. We were, of course, presenting our Grand Puppet Circus, and I always find that Circus Music boosts enthusiasm.

Of course not all children had ever seen a real Circus, but even so they entered in to the spirit and enjoyed all the fun of the Sawdust Ring, even if they weren’t sure of the purpose of a Rigmaster, and had never seen a Trapeze. A good time was had by all.

I introduced some Optical Illusions into the Magic section of the show,and these proved very popular. I had show some at Easter and they seemed to intrigue the children, so I found a few more for this show.

In the Marionette Cabaret I used one of my earliest acts from my Night Club days. It was a Pop Singer, but one from the 1960s/1970s. I knew it wouldn’t mean much to the youngsters, but Gran and Grandad would remember. I also included an Opera Singer – but a parody. I wasn’t sure how this would go, but even the younger children found it funny.

Anyway I’m busy planning the Christmas Show – “SANTA’S MAGIC TOYSHOP”

The Toys have got together to put on a Concert, a talent show for Santa to enjoy after all his hard work. Of course all the best toys have been delivered to all those Christmas stockings by the time Boxing Day arrives. So the toys that are left behind are the old fashioned toys, the broken toys and the forgotten toys. But Bimbo the Clown has been encouraging them, and I think they’ve all done a good job in creating a sparkling show. I hope Santa enjoys it too.

Of course there will also be some Bimbamboozle Christmas Magic and also a Selection of items in a festive Marionette Cabaret. I always enjoy the Christmas Show, I hope you will too.

We frequently choose a Fairy Tale Traditional Panto – in recent years we’ve had Sleeping Beauty and Aladdin – but each year we manage to clash with at least one other local Panto. There won’t be any danger of that this year.

Advance booking is open now. Prices are £9 for Adults and only £6 for both Children and the same for Senior Citizens. Those are the Advance Booking Prices. I may be raising these nearer to Christmas!!

So if you are planning to come do book your seats early.

And if you are not planning to came, then can I wish you a Warm & Happy Chrismas and a Warm and Happy New Year.

October Half Term Season Going Well

The show seems to be very popular, with three out of the four performances so far fully booked. Of course the smaller audiences necessitated by Covid rules means a “full house” is much more likely. I must admit that despite the cut in revenue I do enjoy the smaller audiences with a more intimate and friendly atmosphere. I’m enjoying it.
This is a very demanding show two very different scenes to set and a longer magic show than usual. The show is supposed to last an hour and a half but has been nearly two hours on a couple of days. Nobody has complained.
This weeks cabaret features Kasperl, the little Austrian puppet (based on pinnocchio) carved by Eric Bramall. Also there’s my Violinist, one of my own early puppets made mostly in papie mache. The Harlequin puppet-working-a-puppet was the original idea of Eric Bramall, and was of course a very appropriate act for a cabaret at The Harlequin Puppet Theatre.
One of the Program items, The Handkerchief Ballet was devised by Eric but was based on the brilliant original idea of Buster Stavordale, a clever puppeteer who throughout the 1950s toured a Puppet Show for the Sharp’s Toffee Company. The Sharp’s Puppet Theatre was quite famous in its day and was featured during “The Festival of Britain”. Eric and Buster were great friends and shared a lot of ideas, and made puppets for each other.

ReOpening At Last!

All things continuing as announced by the Welsh Government we will be able to open for a short Summer Season, starting on Monday August 10th and ending on August 30th. We will have a show at 3pm, Monday to Friday when we will be showing The Grand Puppet Circus, then after a short interval we will have Mr Bimbamboozle’s Magic Tricks – with lots of participation by the Children. Then to finish the show, as always, there will be a selection of acts from Marionette Cabaret, where you see not only incredible manipulation but also see just how the strings are pulled.

You Can Book in Advance at: 
Http://puppetshow.info/mob

You Can Book in Advance at: 
Http://puppetshow.info/mob


May Half Term Holiday Online Puppet Show

May Half Term Online Show

From the replies I have received it seems that the online shows, Aladdin at Christmas and the Sleeping Beauty for February Half Term, then the ever popular Alice in Wonderland for the Easter Holiday, have proved popular and given me something to do.

So for the May Half Term, May 29th to June 6th, I plan to do Eric Bramall’s favourite Puppet Play, “The Princess & the Gooseberry Mandarin”. I know some of you have seen this before, but for those who haven’t, you are in for the biggest surprise ending in puppetry. Of course it won’t be as powerful on the screen as when you are actually in the theatre.

But hopefully this will be the last online show that we have to do. I’m desperately hoping that I’ll be able to open for at least part of the Summer Holidays.

Tickets can be bought in advance at http://puppetshow.info and at https://puppetpanto.co.uk

And if you enjoy the show I’d love to hear from you, or from the children. You or they can email me at chris@punchandjudy.com
Keep Safe everyone, we’re on the last few laps now! Surely?

Things are looking a bit more cheerful aren’t they? Just a bit. No sign of the Harlequin actually re-opening yet. Still I thought I should do something for half term.

ONLINE PANTO FOR 2020

ALADDIN or The Wonderful Lamp

Like everyone else we have been turned topsy-turvy by this Covid virus and the ever changing regulations to keep us all as safe as possible. Certainly it soon became clear that we in Wales were not going to be able to open theatres for pantomimes and Christmas shows. It won’t be the same, but we are going to upload our pantomime onto the web and invite you all to pretend you are at the puppet theatre watching the show.
We have chosen that traditional favourite, ALADDIN, or the Wonderful Lamp. A version of this story is told in practically every country of the world but our version is loosely based on that which appears as one of the stories told by Sherazade in the Arabian Nights.It’s the story of a poor Chinese boy, the son of a widowed washer-woman, from Pekin . who gets the better of the wicked Abanazar who pretends to be his uncle.
The story takes Aladdin and Abanazar into the mountains, to a secret cave and a magical treasure. Aladdin is locked inside this cave but manages to escape with the help of a Magic Lamp and a Giant Green Genie.
Abanazar nearly defeats Aladdin but, with the help of his girlfriend, a beautiful Princess, Aladdin tricks the wicked Abanazar, marries the Princess and his mother,Widow Twankey, marries the Emperor, and everyone lives very happily indeed.

To book for this Puppet Pantomime Online please go to

http://puppetshow.info

Mr Punch’s Birthday Celebrations May 10th 2020

This annual event known as The May Fayre takes place in St Paul’s Churchyard, Covent Garden, London on the Sunday nearest the anniversary of Punch’s first recorded appearance in Britain.

This year it has had to be cancelled due to this wretched virus. The Punch and Judy fraternity are therefore celebrating online, mainly on the Punch and Judy Page on Facebook.

Chris Somerville’s contribution can be seen here:

Chris, aka Mr Bimbamboozle, presents Punch & Judy to a tiny audience on a very windy Llanfairfechan seafront.

This is not my idea of fun

I started writing this blog when the theatre was struck by tragedy and the theatre suffered an arson attack. It was a relatively small fire but it caused a lot of damage and kept the theatre closed for a full year.

Now we are closed again, but not for refurbishment (and hopefully not for a full year) but for the safety of us all. We are all, literally “all” because the whole world is involved, in the throes of this nightmare which is this coronavirus attack. It is quite terrifying in its speed of spreading among the community and the numbers to whom it proves fatal.  The only good side, as far as there can be a good side, is that by and large it seems to be sparing  children, who rarely catch the virus or if they do then only mildly. 

I pray that all of you will stay safe and healthy, the children of course, but also the Mums and Dads and very especially, the Grandmas and Grandads who are so often the ones who bring the children to the theatre. Of course, they by dint of age, are, like me, among those who are most vulnerable. Of course as I’m much older than you grandparents I’m supposedly much more vulnerable.

Anyway I’m going to do my very best to come through this ordeal and hope to see you all in happier days when we are able to act normally and gather together when I can get my “fix” of children’s laughter.

Until then, keep safe, keep well, and keep praying.