A Panto is Made:: Mouse Mummy - Henrietta Michael: Parent Blog 1

Hi All,

Tuesday night. December 4th.

I am delighted to welcome today's Guest Blogger: Henrietta MIchael, Mouse Mummy of Freya Michael from Young Company Team One. 
Its fantastic to kick off these Guest Blogs straightaway with one from a parent! I hope Henrietta will have started a trend. Her perspective gives you, Dear Reader, insights that I do not have into the level of commitment and love that the parents have given to our show. Without them none of this would be possible. So here is Henrietta's Guest Blog 1. I hope this is just the first of many from her and other members of TEAM CINDERELLA 2012 

 Introductions, questions and more questions!

Hi there, I hope you’re all going to be VERY nice to me as it’s my first time blogging….

Well. Let’s get started. First to introduce myself, Henrietta (very nice to meet you all) - I am the very proud mum of one of the little panto mice- little Freya, Team 1, aka Cammy. This is our first pantomime and, according to Freya, will definitely not be the last!! Not sure if this is a good thing yet, although I definitely know that the regular walks from East Ham to the Malthouse/Barking Broadway for rehearsals have kept us very fit and ready for that lovely hot chocolate from Costa just before we get there.

The initial auditions seem so long ago and I remember walking into the Malthouse seeing so many children eager to be involved in the Barking Broadway pantomime. 

It was quite daunting and the waiting for 2 hours whilst they auditioned .. well, the chairs had been placed in a circle so it wasn’t just a case of sitting down and reading a book. There were lots of people to talk to and phone pictures to be shared of our gorgeous , talented kids. 

Freya came out at the end looking tired but very excited, and perhaps even more tired after I had asked her probably too many questions about how it had all gone. ‘’Mummy, can we not talk about it anymore?’’ was her response and I duly kept quiet. Until the recalls, that is!!

So that was all the way back in September And now? 

Freya comes out of the Pantomime, looking a bit exhausted, but very happy. Her legs may be hurting but she still wants to sing and dance to one of the songs from the production. I can see how the training, legendary warm ups (thanks Owen) and Creative team’s attention to detail have changed the way she performs and also how she looks at performances. And it’s wonderful to see!

It’s strange how we too have become so involved in the whole experience. The blogs provide us with updates on how it’s all going and insights into theatre direction and experience. 

The open dress rehearsal gave my son and me the opportunity to see what exactly they have been doing for the last few months. We both loved Rubella’s song as she stood centre stage. (I also loved the sequin dress –red and very striking!) In fact, we loved it all and were still discussing it the following morning over a very early cup of coffee before he left for his paper round. Beats talking about homework, definitely!

It will be very interesting to live through the Pantomime from behind stage as a chaperone. Can’t wait! Will I still be allowed to ask Freya how it all went? We’ll see.