FOLLOWING the success of 2022-23's 'The Panto Adventures of Peter Pan', preparations are already well underway for Basildon Towngate Theatre's pantomime for 2023-24 - Cinderella!

On Sunday, 21 May 2023, local children will be offered the opportunity to audition to perform in the upcoming production.

The Towngate is looking for two groups of children, with different skill sets.

Auditions for both groups will be held at the Towngate Theatre on St Martin's Square and are open to boys and girls aged from seven to 17 years. Children must be accompanied by a parent or guardian at all times.

The two groups are as follows:

1.      Cinderella & Buttons' Gang

Talented children who can sing, dance and act to be part of Cinderella and Buttons' gang. These will be speaking and singing parts for boys and girls aged between 7 and 12 years.

This will be a dance-based audition, although auditionees do not need to have a substantial amount of dance experience - they are looking for youngsters who have very good movement skills with a strong and confident attitude. Successful auditionees will be recalled for a singing and dialogue audition later that afternoon.

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Registration 9:30am Dance Auditions: 10am-12:30pm Dialogue & Singing Recall: 3:15pm-5pm

2.      The Young Ensemble Auditions

They are also looking for extremely talented dancers aged between 11-17 years, who have at least five years' experience of dance training. These children will be featured heavily in the dance sequences alongside the professional Ensemble in the big musical numbers.

Please note: For 17-year-olds to qualify, you must still be 17 on 2 January 2024.

Registration: 12:30pm Auditions: 1pm - 5pm

Towngate Theatre Manager and Co-Producer, Simon Scott-Pearce, says: "We are so excited to bring you the Panto of all Pantos - Cinderella!

"We'll be sure to sweep you off your feet with magic and have you rolling in the aisles with laughter, with our sparkling adventure for all the family!

"The Towngate's pantomimes have been a part of Basildon's festive offering for over 16 years, becoming a Basildon family favourite and the start of many a Basildonian's Christmas celebration."

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Basildon favourite, Simon Fielding, who returns this year as Cinderella's co-producer and director says: "I am so excited that we are back in Basildon this year with the most magical of all pantomimes - Cinderella! It really is a very special panto title and we will be sprinkling you with all the usual fairy dust throughout the show and more!

"As always, what really makes the magic 'pop' on stage is our talented Young Ensemble who continue to get more astonishing year-on-year! We can't wait to see what the Essex youngsters have in store for us on our audition day in May!

"Over the years, our dedicated team have been passionate in providing a platform for the youth of Basildon to take part in the pantomime as the young ensemble, with many that have gone on to have successful careers in the theatre and dance industry."

For further information on the Young Ensemble Auditions, visit: Auditions | Towngate Theatre.

Once again, the Towngate's Box Office records have been broken with Cinderella currently outselling all previous pantomimes at this time in their respective years.

It is strongly recommended that audiences book early, as this is on-track to be their biggest selling panto yet.

UK Pantomime Award-nominated Sophie Ladds and talented Dame, Ian Hallard, will both be returning to the Towngate stage this year.

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Cinderella runs at the Towngate Theatre from Friday, 24 November 2023 – Tuesday, 2 January 2024.

To book tickets, visit http://www.towngatetheatre.co.uk or call the Box Office on 01268 205 300