Time for Women with Talent to Take Back Older Female Roles in Pantos

[SpringTimeIsRingTime]

Panto Dames have been a thing since 1806 when a certain Mr Simmons decided to play Mother Goose as a Witch (how original) rather than as a caring grandmother figure. Nowadays panto dames are mainly played by gay men in drag.

I think it's time for talented actresses to take back elder female roles from the tired tropes played by men since the Victorian era.

Give over, it's panto.

And not all panto dames are gay men.

Take them back from what, exactly?

The pantomime dame has always been played by a man. It was originated as such. And pantomimes themselves are descendants of the traditional mummers' play in which all the roles were played by men.

Honestly, out of all the places in which older women are underrepresented, I think pantomime dames are the least of our problems.

The old, male, panto Dame is the main reason that I go. Plenty of other roles for everyone else.

Panto dames only exist since the Victorian era which was not known for being female friendly. The roles taken by men were originally for older women.
Not nice!

Time to take them back and give older far more talented actresses their roles back!

The old male panto dame roles were originally written for older women.
Bloody men take everything - given half a chance.

And what about the fact that the "principal boy" i.e. male, romantic lead, is always played by a woman? Thoughts?

But most of the time, it just isn't. Where I live there are always posters for the pantos at four large venues. I always notice there is one female name/face on each poster and between four and seven men. I'm sure this doesn't represent every panto in the history of time, but I've noticed the pattern in all four venues posters for the last decade (since I started noticing).

I don’t see why they don’t cancel mrs browns boys and have a show fronted by a woman 🤷‍♀️

No they were never originally for older women. I feel like I’ve fallen into an alternate version of history.

And by talented older women do you mean Katie Price?

The dames wouldn't be as funny if they were played by a woman. Somehow, the image of a woman dressed in increasingly ridiculous costumes and terrible make up doesn't work as well for a pantomime dame. The formula has worked well for over 200 years, leave it alone!

Really? I must admit I haven't been to a pantomime for a long, long time.

Best pantomime dame I ever saw was Les Dawson in "Babes in the Wood" at the Palace Theatre, Manchester in 1985. My what a cast that was! Ruth Madoc played Robin Hood and John Nettles, then at the height of his Bergerac fame, played the Sherrif of Nottingham. Oh and John Noakes was playing whatever the comic male part was.

I have to say that I do remember as a little girl absolutely hating the pantomime dame part of the pantomime. In my mind the best people in my life was the women - my grandmother my aunties my mum, and some bloke was there dressing up as a caricature of them and mocking them it made me really upset actually.

So I've never liked men dressing up as women and mocking them ever going back as young as I remember

You really don't like gender non conforming men do you OP.

The whole point of a pantomime dame is that it is played by a man. I don't see the issue.
If a producer/director wanted to case an older woman and an older wanted to do it I'm sure they would but it wouldn't be a traditional pantomime

I think I went to that as well. A Christmas tradition of my family was that everybody went to the Palace Theatre on Boxing Day to see whatever pantomime was on.

I have to say that I do make an exception for Les Dawson because I think he loved women and he wasn't being nasty about them he was just being really funny

Oh yes they are

The principal boy was played by a woman for the titillation of Victorian men at a time when women had to cover every part of their body except their face.

"Allowing" a slim young good-looking woman to prance around the stage in a pair of tights with a tunic barely covering her backside must have been quite the pleasure ride for the male half of the audience. It was a gimmick to get bums on seats, that's all and for all the wrong reasons.

I would go so far to say why can they not cancel it and just broadcast a wall of drying paint. I'd prefer to watch it.

I am not one of those people who wants programs cancelled just because I don't watch or enjoy them, but MBB is the exception!

Can't get a head of steam up about this though, so fully agree with @SlightlyUnexpected post at 15:37.

agree 😂😂 it’s just mrs browns boys that greatly offends me!

Panto Dames have been a thing since 1806 when a certain Mr Simmons decided to play Mother Goose.... I think it's time for talented actresses to take back elder female roles from the tired tropes played by men since the Victorian era.

That 1806 was part of the Victorian era would have been a surprise to Her Late Majesty as she wasn't born until 1819 and didn't ascend the throne until 1837.

🙄

It's a highly visible role and one designed for older women.

Same here.
We’d probably stop going if our local pantomime changed this.

Yes, this will be sure to smash the patriarchy. The men will be laughing on the other side of their overpainted faces.