Preston’s festive scene has taken a turn after the city’s planned professional pantomime was cancelled.
Rapunzel had been scheduled to run on various dates throughout December at Stage City in the city centre. Producers, Darling Productions UK, told The Stage that unforeseen delays with set construction had caused the show to be pulled.
A spokesperson for Stage City said: “The venue itself had been ready for weeks, including all the additional tech needed. Sales were strong, so it’s a shame for everyone involved.”
After the cancellation left Prestonians disappointed, Stage City moved to create alternative festive entertainment.
A new one-hour production, Santa’s Frozen Adventure, is set to fill some of the December dates originally planned for Rapunzel. The interactive show will see Santa and his magical elves enlist the audience to save Christmas from the Evil Snow Queen – featuring songs, cookie decorating, and even snow.
The venue is also planning to run Christmas movie nights throughout the month.
Read more: Christmas arrives at Leyland Garden Centre with new displays and events
A Stage City spokesperson added: “We had a lot of customers contact us asking if something else could be organised, so we decided to put our feet in the water with these new events. We’ve had a great amount of sign ups within a few hours of announcing.”
Keen to see how Santa’s Frozen Adventure fares, the venue may look to produce panto in-house in future years.
Tickets for Santa’s Frozen Adventure will be released on Friday 7 November at 10am on the Stage City website, or you can sign up to the VIP Club for early release tickets.
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