{"id":682772,"date":"2026-01-08T18:29:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-08T18:29:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/682772\/"},"modified":"2026-01-08T18:29:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-08T18:29:15","slug":"festive-pantos-receive-rave-reviews-with-over-3000-attending-on-christmas-eve","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/682772\/","title":{"rendered":"Festive pantos receive rave reviews with over 3000 attending on Christmas Eve"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Merseyside has been treated to not one but two critically acclaimed pantomimes, with over 55,000 tickets sold over the festive season and sold out shows across Merseyside.<\/p>\n<p>Cinderella completed its hugely successful run at the historical Epstein Theatre this weekend, with rave reviews describing it as \u201ca glitter-dusted crowd-pleaser\u201d, \u201csparkling and wickedly fun\u201d, and full of \u201chigh energy and hi-jinks\u201d. It was the first pantomime performance at the Epstein since it reopened in April of this year.<\/p>\n<p>Featuring a star-studded cast, including Coronation Street\u2019s Katie McGlynn as the titular heroine, Leanne Campbell as the Fairy Godmother and TV\u2019s much loved Kevin Dualla as Buttons, thousands flocked to see this \u201cjoyful and hilarious\u201d panto, praising the \u201coutstanding cast and performances\u201d.<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-38564 size-large lazyload\" alt=\"A picture of some of the Cinderella cast on stage mid performance \" width=\"696\" height=\"464\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Cinderella-Epstein-Theatre-Prod-Pic-4-Credit-David-Munn-1024x682.jpg\"  data- data-eio-rwidth=\"1024\" data-eio-rheight=\"682\"\/>Cinderella was the first pantomime performed at the Epstein since it reopened in April. (c) David Munn<\/p>\n<p>Also featured were the talented dancers of Nazene Danielle\u2019s Dance Dynamix, a performing arts school based in Liverpool city centre.<\/p>\n<p>Epstein Theatre Director Maureen Bramwell and Manager Stephen Edgerton said: \u201cA real highlight was the school shows \u2013 the kids absolutely loved it, and there was such a magical atmosphere during those performances.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Pantomimes haves always been a Christmas tradition to many across Merseyside so it\u2019s no surprise the Liverpool Everyman has also enjoyed jam packed shows throughout December.<\/p>\n<p>A spokesperson for the Everyman said: \u201cAt the Playhouse, Young Frankenstein was enjoyed by many people on their first visit, with 41% of bookers new to us. It\u2019s a lovely reminder of how festive theatre brings people together to share cherished moments they\u2019ll remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-38567 lazyload\" alt=\"A picture of Katie McGlynn alongside the ugly step sisters on stage.\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Cinderella-Epstein-Theatre-Prod-Pic-3-Credit-David-Munn-300x200.jpg\"  data- data-eio-rwidth=\"300\" data-eio-rheight=\"200\"\/>Coronation Street\u2019s Katie McGlynn stared as Cinderella (c) David Mun<\/p>\n<p>For those who didn\u2019t manage to see Cinderella\u2019s sensational run at the Epstein, you can catch Emmerdale\u2019s Matthew Wolfenden as Dick Wittington at the St Helens Theatre Royal stage. Joined by fan favourites Lewis Devine, Timothy Lucas, Chantelle Morgan, Rachael Wood, Jenna Sian O\u2019Hara and Richard Aucott, as well as more performances from Dance Dynamix, many audience members have described this as the best pantomime they\u2019ve ever seen.<\/p>\n<p>Regal Entertainments Ltd co-director, and director of Dick Whittington, Chantelle Joseph took on the challenge of staging the two huge pantomimes simultaneously. She credits the<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-38569 lazyload\" alt=\"A shot of Emmerdale\u2019s Matthew Wolfenden performing on stage as Dick Wittington alongside co-stars\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Dick-Whittington-Prod-shot-3-Credit-David-Munn-Photography-300x200.jpg\"  data- data-eio-rwidth=\"300\" data-eio-rheight=\"200\"\/>Emmerdale\u2019s Matthew Wolfenden stars as Dick Wittington at the St Helens Theatre Royal. (c) David Munn<\/p>\n<p>success to the \u201cdedication and talent not only of our two brilliant casts, but also the creative teams behind both shows, along with fantastic freelancers and the tireless front-of-house staff at St Helens and the Epstein Theatre.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>With six shows left over this weekend, audiences are advised to grab tickets while they can to enjoy the \u201cmagical atmosphere during those performances.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Tickets can be purchased at the Theatre Royal Box Office or over the phone on 01744 756000, from Monday to Saturday, 10am to 5pm. Bookings can also be made online at <a href=\"https:\/\/urldefense.com\/v3\/__http:\/www.sthelenstheatreroyal.com\/__;!!IhKztkE!ZpBL-cuEz5w4ovFg7K4cs6bZVEZUfzcqEE603Iehb4kGKatlrmDxnc5VvESLZ_lXYe_KxNKY2xV2VzZhbA$\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">www.sthelenstheatreroyal.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-38570 lazyload\" alt=\"A shot of some of the cast of Dick Wittington performing on stage.\" width=\"696\" height=\"464\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Dick-Whittington-Prod-shot-5-Credit-David-Munn-Photography-1024x682.jpg\"  data- data-eio-rwidth=\"1024\" data-eio-rheight=\"682\"\/>Dick Whittington can be seen at the St Helens Theatre Royal until this Sunday. (c) David Munn<\/p>\n<p>View our post on this seasons festive pantos here: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@merseynewslive\/video\/7592640163537374486?_r=1&amp;_t=ZN-92sP7tMkXPq\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">#sthelens #pantomime #merseyside #showbiznews #epsteintheare With 55,0\u2026 | TikTok<\/a><\/p>\n<p>    <script async src=\"\/\/www.tiktok.com\/embed.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Merseyside has been treated to not one but two critically acclaimed pantomimes, with over 55,000 tickets sold over&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":682773,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_share_on_mastodon":"0"},"categories":[8815],"tags":[748,393,42484,4884,179,169820,16,15],"class_list":["post-682772","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-liverpool","tag-britain","tag-england","tag-epstein-theatre","tag-great-britain","tag-liverpool","tag-panto","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/682772","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=682772"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/682772\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/682773"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=682772"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=682772"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=682772"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}