'Relaxed' pantomime performance 'accessible to all'

A pantomime will host a special "relaxed" performance for children with neurological conditions.

Jack and the Beanstalk, at Otterbourne Village Hall in Hampshire, will feature Makaton signing, as well as fewer loud bangs and bright lights.

Otterbourne Theatre Company director Sarah Hobbs said they had tried to reduce "special effects" to avoid overwhelming some viewers.

Sound engineer Charles Oldham added: "My own son is autistic and he has difficulty coming to shows so it's something that's really important to us."

He said: "Without those louder crashes – we just turn all that down – it means [the children are] not scared by it.

"We leave the lights up a little bit in the auditorium as well, and people can move out of the hall if they want to."

Tom Horscroft, an audience member at one of the dress rehearsals at the 240-person capacity venue, said the show was "perhaps not quite so scary in certain parts".

"But it really gets the kids involved and the audience are really on board, with the children being up and down and moving around and being part of the performance as well," he said.

Jess, a cast member appearing in the show with her young daughter Cerys, said her co-star disliked loud noises, bright flashes, and dark theatres when she was younger.

"It really affected the way things were, so not having the loud bangs, it helps," she said.

Cerys added: "I think it's a good thing, so that people with special needs, their ears don't start hurting."

Ms Hobbs said: "Special effects can be quite overwhelming for children and those with additional needs so it's reduced or taken out completely, enabling everybody to experience that part of theatre."

Makaton is a sign and symbol language that is used in pre-school and Early Years settings to help young children develop communication skills, and uses signs from British Sign Language.

Becky Ebsworth, a Makaton tutor from Gosport, is signing the show, and said the unpredictable nature of panto meant the cast "go off script sometimes".

"I'm quite lucky that I've been doing Makaton for a while that I'm able to ad lib with them, but it can be quite difficult because sometimes they do throw me a few curveballs," she explained.

"We just have to go with the flow."

Otterbourne Theatre Company, which has been performing since 1981, will be performing Jack and the Beanstalk across several shows between 9 and 18 January.

The relaxed performance takes place at 11:00 on 11 January.

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