For many, Pantomime, marks the beginning of festive celebration, one thing we start to consider because the darkish nights attract, however for some it’s a world they dwell and work in twelve months a 12 months!
Husband-and-wife staff Sarah and Steve Boden, who run the pantomime and theatre manufacturing firm Imagine Theatre, share their ‘panto land’; How all of it started, what evokes them, and their imaginative and prescient as they rejoice their 243rd skilled pantomime manufacturing.
How all of it started
Speaking from their (very sparkly!) purpose-built facility in Coventry with 1000’s of bins of sweets lining the partitions able to be packed into goody baggage for fortunate viewers members, Steve shares how Imagine started:
“In the late 1990s, I worked at the Belgrade Theatre where Iain Lachlan and Will Brenton were creating traditional, wholesome rep style family pantomimes. With fresh scenery and costumes each year, at the end of the season everything would be discarded, a huge waste! Iain, being a canny Scotsman with a big barn outside Banbury, decided to store the sets. He came to me and said, ‘I’ve got some panto scenery sitting in a barn. What should we do with it?’ so, we started hiring the sets out to other producers. Soon enough venues started asking , “These are really nice sets. Can you produce our pantos as well?” And we thought “Yeah, we can do that.”
What began as a barn filled with surroundings rapidly developed right into a full-blown pantomime manufacturing firm with the staff quick buying surroundings from different theatres. As the corporate grew so did Steve’s relationship with Sarah who he met in 1999 on the Priory Theatre in Kenilworth. Sarah remembers:
“I had a ‘normal’ job back then. Steve was involved in the creative side of things, in theatre and pantos. Our paths didn’t really cross much at first. I was performing, and he was behind the scenes. It wasn’t until later, after I returned from a job in Cambridge, that Steve cast me in a production of Nunsense, and the rest is history. We got married in 2002”.
A turning level got here when Sarah grew to become extra concerned in Imagine serving to Steve with council procurement contracts, one thing she was skilled with in her ‘day’ job. Steve remembers:
“This was well out of my comfort zone as a creative! But Sarah understood the business side perfectly. It’s the perfect balance of ‘show’ and ‘business’. Our skill sets complement each other”
Sarah agrees: “It’s a great balance because we both understand and respect what the other brings to the table. It’s really been the foundation of Imagine’s growth – Natural and gradual”.
A number of years later Sarah joined Imagine full time, and in 2009 the couple took on sole possession of the corporate. Still working alongside Iain and Will to this present day, “This is when Imagine literally became a family business” Steve notes.
Fast ahead to 2023, after a interval of exponential progress and Imagine teamed up with Trafalgar Entertainment, an organization who share a synergy with Imagine, not least as a household enterprise, additionally run by a husband-and-wife staff, Howard Panter and Rosemary Squire. Steve describes this partnership as “The perfect fit” and a pure step towards enlargement and bringing much more pleasure to an excellent wider viewers.
This upcoming season will see Imagine work on over 40 reveals throughout the UK, supplying every little thing from a single prop by to the staging of complete productions.
But what’s it prefer to dwell in Panto land 24/7… twelve months a 12 months? Steve explains:
“It’s hard work. For us, panto is not just about Christmas; it’s a big operation that requires a huge amount of planning and logistics year-round. We have an extraordinarily dedicated team giving it 100% every day of the year. But we do it because we love it. It’s fun, a bit mad and often very silly!”
Sarah provides with fun: “We spend most of the year finding glitter everywhere. But we wouldn’t want to do it with anyone else by our sides. It’s an adventure, and though it can be exhausting, seeing families come together to enjoy the show is so rewarding and makes it all worthwhile”
In the previous two years, Imagine Theatre has acquired 20 nominations from the UK Pantomime Association Awards, profitable 5, together with Best Set and Best Pantomime (over 900 seats). Steve believes their ongoing success comes from their ardour for pantomime, storytelling and dedication to household values:
“Family is central to everything we do. Not just in our own lives but it’s on the bones of our business too. Our team, from cast to crew are part of our extended family. Everyone feels a sense of ownership and belonging”
With a core staff of 30 workers rising to over 500 throughout panto season Imagine actually operates like one giant household. Sarah agrees:
“We have built wonderful friendships over the years. When we walk into a venue, it’s wonderful to be greeted by familiar faces, even in our audiences. We are so lucky to work with such dedicated and talented people working in partnership with us, across the whole of the UK.”
Family Values and Inclusivity
It appears becoming then, that Imagine is dedicated to producing the reveals which assist to convey households collectively and create magical reminiscences. Steve explains:
“Our ethos is about strong storytelling combined with high-quality production values. We create shows that are accessible to everyone, whether you’re 5 or 105, you can enjoy them together as a family. It’s important to us that any child can sit with their grandparents and that everyone enjoys the show. We embrace spectacular family-friendly pantomimes, where everyone can have fun!”
Championing household values and inclusivity, Steve and Sarah themselves usually exit of their technique to go the additional mile. Sarah laughs “For our Santa shows we’ve personally driven across the country to deliver goody bags when we were running short to make sure every child gets a gift. No one is left out!”
As one of many few large-scale panto producers to host open auditions for kids Imagine’s dedication to inclusivity is evident. Steve provides:
“We want to live our values, not just talk about them. We believe in giving young performers a chance to grow. We want to nurture the next generation of panto professionals, both on and off the stage. A lot of the people we’ve worked with have grown with us, from being in the junior ensemble to becoming lead actors. It’s incredibly rewarding to see that progression”
The couple see the function of Imagine as being one of many present custodians of panto, passing on these values to the subsequent technology, serving to to make sure that panto has an extended and fruitful future for generations to return. Sarah believes there’ll at all times be a younger passionate panto fanatic able to take the baton:
“I have no doubt there is another young Steve Boden standing waiting in the wings, who has the same passion for panto as we do, we want to nurture this talent!”
Looking Forward
Imagine is dedicated to conserving the much-loved custom of panto alive. Their reveals proceed to convey our favorite fairytales and conventional panto characters to life, in reveals brimming with all of the panto substances that households throughout generations love; tune, dance, comedy, viewers interplay and slosh scenes. But additionally they embrace innovation. As Sarah explains:
“Panto is so steeped in history and the traditional panto conventions like “It’s behind you!” and the ghost gags will at all times be there. They are what folks anticipate and love and lengthy might that proceed. But evolving with the instances is vital to conserving the artwork kind alive and related”
For Imagine this evolution has included the introduction of their state-of-the-art, award profitable digital units 5 years in the past, which have taken the panto world by storm profitable accolades from audiences and critics alike. Steve explains:
“This form of new expertise has allowed us to reinforce the expertise for a brand new technology, whereas conserving the center of Panto intact by the core components of storytelling while embracing expertise which feels very present and accessible.
As custodians of the much-loved custom Steve and Sarah each really feel privileged to be a part of the magical, fun-filled world of pantomime. Steve concludes:
“Pantomime is something we both love and cherish. It brings so much joy and brings families together at the most magical time of the year, creating long lasting memories, laughing together and enjoying an experience that only live theatre can achieve. We want everyone, no matter their age or background, to feel like they’re back to being six years old again for those two hours. If we’ve achieved that, we’ve done our job”
Find out extra about Imagine Theatre’s spectacular star-studded pantomime season at www.imaginetheatre.co.uk
