Andrew Ryan Interview: Relaxed Pantomime Performances
Title
Andrew Ryan Interview: Relaxed Pantomime Performances
Date
11 January 2018
Description
Oral history interview with Andrew Ryan, actor, director and regular Pantomime dame
What's the story?
Born in Bradford, Andrew has an extensive and wide-ranging acting and directing career, working in both the West End and theatres up and down the country. He is well-known to Theatre Royal audiences, through his regular involvement in the annual Classic Thriller Season.
His Pantomime career spans 31 productions. 2017 was his 27th year playing the Dame, including four appearances in many extravagant frocks at the Theatre Royal.
In this interview, Andrew discusses his enjoyment of relaxed performances, which encourage new audiences and families, particularly those with children on the autistic spectrum, to enjoy the spectacle of live theatre.
And we do relaxed performance, which is for autism or other disabilities and for dementia. And for people, for families that often don’t get to go out because they will have a child or somebody in their family who logistically it’s difficult to take out because of wheelchairs, or they might be noisy, which makes it difficult to go to the theatre because they might be a distraction for other people. And it’s kind of difficult.
But the relaxed performances are brilliant because there are whole families, there are loads of people and it’s almost like “Oh, you as well”. And it’s fine for their children to run about in the auditorium or we have quiet zones outside in the foyer. So if it’s all too much for them …. And with the 3D sequence we say “You wear the glasses, but if you don’t like it, just shut your eyes or take the glasses off”. And we had two relaxed performances yesterday and they loved it. They still loved the 3D sequence and they scream, because it’s quite scary really. The one we’ve got, it is terrifying. But they loved it. But different audiences, they might laugh at it, but when it’s all kids watching the 3D, when it’s schoolchildren, it’s just a sea of screaming. They just go wild. But that sort of terrified, but loving terrified. Because kids love to be frightened, don’t they?
But people do react differently to that. It was interesting doing the relaxed performance, just watching them. And some of them behaved quietly and some of them were screaming. But it’s a lovely thing and we keep the auditorium lights on and for example, the lighting around the sea monster had to be changed. And I think, possibly, to be honest, that effect wouldn’t be as good yesterday. But it didn’t matter. You go “They might have seen how it worked a bit” (but I’m not telling you how it worked), but they might have gone “Oh, that’s how it’s done”, because the lighting had to be slightly adjusted just so it wasn’t so in your face. For that section the lighting is very, how would you say, it’s very sort of stark, it’s very abrupt and very in your face. But we had to lessen it and we lessened the sound yesterday and we took pyrotechnics out of the show.
His Pantomime career spans 31 productions. 2017 was his 27th year playing the Dame, including four appearances in many extravagant frocks at the Theatre Royal.
In this interview, Andrew discusses his enjoyment of relaxed performances, which encourage new audiences and families, particularly those with children on the autistic spectrum, to enjoy the spectacle of live theatre.
And we do relaxed performance, which is for autism or other disabilities and for dementia. And for people, for families that often don’t get to go out because they will have a child or somebody in their family who logistically it’s difficult to take out because of wheelchairs, or they might be noisy, which makes it difficult to go to the theatre because they might be a distraction for other people. And it’s kind of difficult.
But the relaxed performances are brilliant because there are whole families, there are loads of people and it’s almost like “Oh, you as well”. And it’s fine for their children to run about in the auditorium or we have quiet zones outside in the foyer. So if it’s all too much for them …. And with the 3D sequence we say “You wear the glasses, but if you don’t like it, just shut your eyes or take the glasses off”. And we had two relaxed performances yesterday and they loved it. They still loved the 3D sequence and they scream, because it’s quite scary really. The one we’ve got, it is terrifying. But they loved it. But different audiences, they might laugh at it, but when it’s all kids watching the 3D, when it’s schoolchildren, it’s just a sea of screaming. They just go wild. But that sort of terrified, but loving terrified. Because kids love to be frightened, don’t they?
But people do react differently to that. It was interesting doing the relaxed performance, just watching them. And some of them behaved quietly and some of them were screaming. But it’s a lovely thing and we keep the auditorium lights on and for example, the lighting around the sea monster had to be changed. And I think, possibly, to be honest, that effect wouldn’t be as good yesterday. But it didn’t matter. You go “They might have seen how it worked a bit” (but I’m not telling you how it worked), but they might have gone “Oh, that’s how it’s done”, because the lighting had to be slightly adjusted just so it wasn’t so in your face. For that section the lighting is very, how would you say, it’s very sort of stark, it’s very abrupt and very in your face. But we had to lessen it and we lessened the sound yesterday and we took pyrotechnics out of the show.
Type
Oral interview
Location of item
Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall Nottingham
Rights
Theatre Royal & Royal Concert Hall Nottingham
Contributor
Interviewers: Liz Mackenzie and Stephen Bray
Transcriber: David Chilton
Transcriber: David Chilton
