> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://lichfieldlive.co.uk/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Heels behind you! – Lichfield Garrick panto star reveals secret to success - URL: https://lichfieldlive.co.uk/heels-behind-you-lichfield-garrick-panto-star-reveals-secret-to-success/ - Published: 2024-09-19T06:05:00.000Z - Updated: 2024-09-18T13:24:22.000Z - Description: The star behind the Lichfield Garrick’s pantomime dame has revealed the secret to his success in the festive show – appropriate footwear! - Author: Lichfield Live - Tags: What's On, #wp, #wp-post, #Import 2026-07-22 18:53 THE star behind the Lichfield Garrick’s pantomime dame has revealed the secret to his success in the festive show – appropriate footwear! Sam Rabone is returning to the city theatre once again this year for the production of Jack and the Beanstalk. It will mark his 15th year in panto, with preparations underway for another dose of laughter, slosh and slapstick. But as he sat down with *Lichfield Live* alongside Gill Jordan, Sam revealed that there had been one key change in all of his years in pantomime – and it was all down to the footwear the writer and production team wanted him in. > “The previous company I worked for wanted me to be a dame in heels, and then when I became an Evolution dame, the first thing Paul Hendy told me was that he’d prefer it if I wore flats. > > “It was the best thing anybody ever said to me as he grounded my dame, made her more solid and comfortable. I just went ‘ah, this is it’ and I became a happy little fat thing on stage rather than tottering around. > > “That was what really changed everything for me. It changed how I walked, it changed how I stood when I arrived on the stage. > > “The shoes are definitely the difference.” The Garrick’s pantomime has become a firm favourite in the theatre’s annual calendar, with the forthcoming production already seeing more dates added. And Gill, who will be a far cry from her Doreen Tipton character when she plays the role of Fairy Sugarsnap, said: > “People enjoy tradition and traditional things like pantomime where you can visit and know what you’re going to get – you’re going to get a laugh.” Sam added: > “There’s not many things you can do with your grandma and your little three-year-old brother and laugh your head off. > > “Panto does evolve. It doesn’t evolve in the same way that you think, but it is evolving with our audiences and we’re now going for stronger female characters. > > “We’re not taking things too seriously – and I think in a world where everything is so serious at the moment, people just want two-and-a-half hours of nonsense. > > “They want to escape and we’re offering that.” ## “Traditions you possibly wouldn’t know were there” While evolution in characterisation and jokes is continuing, there’s still plenty of room for tradition – even those where the audience may not even be aware. Sam explained: > “Balancing change and tradition is a very fine line, but there’s things that people watching won’t even know about. > > “For example, Gill as the fairy will only ever enter from stage right because that’s the good side, while the evil characters enter from the other side. > > “Gill will also often start talking as a fairy in rhyming couplets, which takes us all the way back to the 1830s where everybody was speaking that way. It was in about 1840 that said only the villains and fairies would speak in couplets. > > “So we’re keeping the traditions that you possibly wouldn’t know were there but then we’re evolving the stories, how the cast is put together and the jokes.” A key part of the panto tradition is the interaction with the audience – oh, yes it is! – but while Sam admits an inner ear problem means he “can’t hear what’s shouted half the time”, Gill said there was always a sense of the unknown when it came to those on the other side of the stage. > “I had a moment in panto a couple of years back where I was singing an operatic solo piece. > > “After I’d finished, an elderly lady on the front clapped and shouted ‘ten out of ten marvellous that was’. > > “Out of 1,000 people there was not one clap apart from the lady who loved it!” Sam added: > “I encourage it because this is the joy that we get from it. The thrill of live theatre is because with the panto tradition we get the children coming with their parents who know when it’s appropriate to stand up and shout. > > “It’s a massive difference when we get a school show in, so sometimes we’ll have ten minutes of booing for the baddie which is joyful to hear because they think it’s the right thing to do. > > “So I do love the shouting out and I love being shouted at. Actually, don’t put that in – I don’t want people shouting at me in the street!” Those who might feel the need to give Sam a word or two in the street could be the residents of Rugeley who are often the subject of a light-hearted jibe or two. But the panto dame promises it’s nothing personal. > “When I first started here in 2016 we just made fun of Rugeley in the routine and that’s been the go-to ever since. > > “I think people would be upset if we didn’t mention it now. > > “Our writer, Paul Hendy, writes such a wonderful script that it’s perfect for adults, children, families – pretty much everyone. > > “There’s slosh involved, there’s stuff for kids. But we don’t go for the innuendo. People ask if we should be, but we can’t be missing it as we’re selling out. Do people need it? I’m quite happy without it.” For Gill, the panto season is something of a homecoming – and she admits she can’t wait to be back on the city stage. > “I love Lichfield. I live local and I visit often. I’ve worked in many different places here. > > “I’ve done the Garrick with my one woman show, the Erasmus Darwin and I’m really excited to be here at Christmas time.” Tickets are on sale now for Jack and the Beanstalk which runs from 22nd November to 12th January. For details visit [the Lichfield Garrick website](https://lichfieldgarrick.com/whats-on/all-shows/jack-and-the-beanstalk-2024-pantomime/3299?ref=lichfieldlive.co.uk).