Aladdin cast announced ahead of launch weekend

The Palace Theatre Newark has announced the full cast for this year’s Christmas pantomime, Aladdin. Already announced are Hayley Tamaddon, best known for Emmerdale and Dancing on Ice, as Princess Jasmine and Tim Freeman who returns to the Newark as that most-famous of pantomime dames, Widow Twankey.

Joining Hayley and Tim will be Jenny Perry as Aladdin, Andrew Piper as Abanazar, Lucy Keirl as So Shi and Emily McGlynn as the Spirit of the Ring. The principal cast is completed by two familiar faces to Newark, Kevin McGreevy as Wishee Washee and Connor McAllister as the Genie of the Lamp. Kevin said “I have been reunited with my Newark panto mum Tim Freeman, who I’m looking forward to working with again!”

Lucy grew up in Newark and is no stranger to the Palace stage: “I danced at the Palace a few times as a child with a local dance school. I also remember seeing all sorts of things there, including Dick Whittington one year as our family panto – I was pretty taken with the pyro that went off every time the fairy appeared, and the big foam fingers in the foyer!”

Many of the cast will be in Newark this Saturday for the annual pantomime launch, where they will be out and about at the Palace and in the town between 11am and 1pm. Carys Coulton Jones, Business Manager for Heritage, Culture and Visitors, said “we love having the panto cast come to visit. Everyone in town is always really excited to see them around in their colourful sparkly costumes and it’s a great reminder that there are less than three months until Aladdin opens”.

Saturday’s launch is the first day of a panto-focused weekend with Sunday seeing open auditions for the Aladdin Junior Chorus. Carys continued, “the standard of auditionees for our junior chorus has been great since we started doing open auditions and we can’t wait to see what 2018 will bring. Over 100 kids turned up to audition last year so we’re very much hoping to beat that record!”

Registration for auditions takes place at the Palace between 9.30am and 10am. Children aged between 9 and 16 are eligible to audition; more information can be found at imaginetheatre.co.uk or by contacting the Palace Theatre Box Office on 01636 655 755 to request a registration form.