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Taunton’s Wayfarers scoop the Cinderella Trophy!

By Sam Allen

If you thought the most glittering event yesterday was the Royal Wedding, well think again. Instead of the Markle sparkle we had panto pandemonium at Rookery Manor in Somerset, where the pantomime glitterati strutted their stuff at the annual Cinderella Trophy awards evening. This was a new venue for the event, and it was not a disappointment. The hall looked stunning, the food was plentiful and the cabaret  was as entertaining as ever.

There is always a frisson in the air for this competition because the nominations are not announced in advance so the air of anticipation was palpable as competition coordinator Pam Price introduced the host for the evening, moderator Nigel Ford. Nigel was on cracking form as he announced the nominees and winners in nearly fifty different categories, all heading towards the big one: The Cinderella Trophy itself, won this year by Wayfarers Pantomime Society from Taunton for their fantastic version of traditional pantomime favourite, Aladdin, written by Alan Frayn. Indeed, Wayfarers were on top form this year, winning trophies for Best Dance Troupe, and Best Chorus, with their Aladdin, Jennifer Holland Brewer picking up the awards for both Best Female Singer and Best Principal Boy.

Yeovil Amateur Pantomime Society also impressed the adjudicators, winning the Cinderella Runners Up Trophy for Beauty and the Beast, with Grace Fahy, who played Belle, winning the awards for Best Principal Girl and the Bradford Trophy for best overall performance in any category aged 16 or under.

The Spotlight Trophy, for Best Village pantomime, was won by CUDOS for Snow White, with Somerton’sJack and the Beanstalkbeing declared runner-up.

The much-prized Eddie Bowker award for best performance in any category went to Mike Taylor of Polden Productions for his outstanding performance as King Rat in Dick Whittington. It truly was a panto performance to savour.

The prestigious Best Director award went to Claudia Pepler of Merlin Theatre in Frome. Her direction of Hansel and Gretelgreatly impressed the adjudicating team.

And so to the dame, one of the most hotly contested trophies every year. This year the accolades went to Nigel McBrayne of Roadwater Players for his portrayal of Aunty Nelly in Nelly the Elephant.

The evening, organised by Pam Price with sound and lighting by Graham Reeks, was acclaimed a huge success. The ‘cabaret’ acts just before the interval were hugely entertaining with performances from Coastline, Wincanton, Glastonbury & Street and Puriton Players. Twenty-four societies were represented out of a total of twenty-seven that entered this year’s competition with nearly 300 people attending. Photos are available on: www.photobox.co.uk/album/4144485066The password is: Rookery (case sensitive).

There is a full list of all the winners below: