Spilling the magic beans on pantomime

THEATRICAL stalwart Catherine Mahon-Buckley has surely earned the title of Mammy of Cork pantomime season now that she is directing her 20th seasonal show for the Everyman. Mahon-Buckley is directing Jack and the Beanstalk for the theatre, and says that every five years, a new generation emerges.

She enjoys the process of making pantomime, starting with an idea which she workshops with the children from her acting school, CADA (Cork Academy of Dramatic Arts). “Children are the greatest connoisseurs of pantomime. They have so much creativity. It’s great to get in tune with what they’re thinking. I take some of their ideas and bring them to the script writer.”

This year’s script writer is Dubliner, Martin Higgins, with whom Catherine has worked before. “He’s a genius of a script writer. And what I love about working with him is that he’s not precious about his writing. He’s open to change if something isn’t working. This is my fifth time working with him. He’s very open to ideas and we have great sessions with him. This is the part of the pantomime that I enjoy most; the journey and the process of it all.”

Once the pantomime opens, Mahon-Buckley watches out for the reaction of the children in the audience. “My contract allows me to make changes up until press night. Sometimes, I don’t need to make changes. Things that I think don’t work are often embraced by the children. You have to be open and you have to make an assessment of the show and be willing to do something about any mistakes made.”

Our director wishing two of her pupils good luck before they star on the toy show! #toyshow#jackandthebeanstalk pic.twitter.com/qVmBMfW5yF

— Jack & the Beanstalk (@Everyman_Panto) November 24, 2013

Mahon-Buckley feels it’s important to maintain the tradition of pantomime which includes the hugely popular dame, played by Jim Mulcahy. “Things are changing so much. But the one thing I’ve noticed throughout the last 20 years is that everybody loves to laugh and children in the audience like to be involved with the pantomime. I love the banter between the children and the cast.”

Mahon-Buckley says that there is going to be a huge surprise in this year’s pantomime, which she doesn’t want to reveal prior to opening night. “If it works, it will be the first time it has ever been done in pantomime. I’ll only be letting the cast know what it is on dress rehearsal night.”

The CADA/Everyman pantomime is often said to be more traditional than what’s on offer at Cork Opera House. “They’re very different pantomimes. I don’t like comparing and contrasting shows because you have to take into consideration the size of the budgets. The Opera House has a huge stage. They have access to flying areas and have trap doors on the floor of the stage that we don’t have. Bryan Flynn [director of the Cork Opera House’s Aladdin] and his team will create their own magic and we’ll create ours. Obviously, we have budgetary restrictions. But the one thing I’ll say about theatre is that it isn’t about the amount of money you spend. You can create magic with a piece of elastic and a rock.”

Meet jacks brothers and sisters! The Dawe family! pic.twitter.com/ZlU3RU43HJ

— Jack & the Beanstalk (@Everyman_Panto) November 23, 2013

While acknowledging the technical age we live in, Mahon-Buckley despairs of some of its excesses. “Because we live in a computer age and a scientifically advanced age, there has to be an element of that in the pantomime. But I would be very strong in saying that while we have every line of communication on hand, are we really communicating? I see the children in the dressing room texting each other even though they’re in the same room. It’s quite frightening. In 20 years time, someone is going to make a fortune out of teaching people how to eyeball each other and talk to each other.”

But despite the age of touch screen technology, Mahon-Buckley is pleased that the children in the cast are very competent in learning their lines in the old fashioned way. “They know that learning off their lines is the first step in the ladder of pantomime. They have to be dedicated. Being involved teaches the children self-esteem and confidence as well as team skills. It’s great training to be able to work with a script that is chopping and changing.”

The giant will be played on alternating nights by Jamie O’Leary and Jack Fitzgerald. How will his size be conveyed? “You don’t necessarily have to be a huge size to be a giant-type character. He’s a shadowy character whose enormity will be in the minds of the audience.”

Jack and the Beanstalk will be performed 44 times. The cast comprises seven principals, six ensemble players, 10 handmaidens and five teams of 20 children who will rotate over the course of the show. The youngest performer is three-and-a-half-year-old Charlotte O’Halloran, who appeared on the recent Late Late Toy Show.

While pantomime is always an extravaganza, Mahon-Buckley wants to impart the message that riches aren’t everything. “When the goose lays the golden egg, I’d like to suggest that it’s not about the money. Because of the recession and what I’ve come through in my own life [Mahon-Buckley underwent a hysterectomy last year], I want to convey that there’s riches in other things besides money, such as family, friendship, honesty and loyalty.”

When Mahon-Buckley set up CADA in her mother’s front room in Turner’s Cross 30 years ago, she had ambition for her fledgling academy which now has 600 students. But she could never have envisaged that she would be directing one of the city’s two main pantomimes for 20 years. And when the curtain comes down on Jack and the Beanstalk on Jan 12, Mahon-Buckley will be planning her 21st pantomime. She has no thoughts of retiring, saying she is blessed with energy and enthusiasm for her work.