Birmingham’s BOA Group and The Old Rep Theatre are inviting audiences to go to the ball this Christmas with a sparkling new panto production of the festive favourite Cinderella. And, promise the team, this is a production which brings the classic story bang into the modern day.

Adapted by Birmingham-based actor & comedian Janice Connolly - perhaps better known as her comic creation Mrs Barbara Nice - and Birmingham actor & writer Lorna Laidlaw, who also directs, the show aims to ensure the fairytale and its characters are more relatable to the 21st century.

Lorna and Janice worked on BOA’s version of The Wizard Of Oz last Christmas and were keen to bring some of their ideas from that show to this year’s production. Lorna says she was initially a bit uncertain that Cinderella was the right choice for families today: “At first I thought, Cinderella? In this day and age? But this Cinderella isn’t just about a girl waiting for a bloke to put a shoe on her and be really happy about it. The slipper going on is fine, but it’s going to be her own life. I think it’s very important to get that balance right.

“We are really making sure that this Cinderella has a bit of oomph about her. She’s not waiting for anything to happen. She’s going to the ball and having a great time. She’s very confident.”

The team were also keen to look again at some of the other classic characters.

“We’ve taken references away like the ‘Ugly Sisters’,” Lorna explains. “We call them the ‘Selfie Sisters’ because we’ve modernised those two girls, and they’re absolutely media-savvy. They still have that relationship with the baroness, Cinderella’s stepmother, who is pushing her daughters to be more computer savvy because that’s the world we’re living in.

“These girls have got their phones with them all the time. It’s about being noticed; it’s about how many ‘likes’ they get. We’re trying to look at the idea that to exist today you have to be in a computer world, but then it’s that thing about self-worth not being wrapped up in a machine.”

Cinderella marks the 10th year that BOA Group and The Old Rep have presented a Christmas show, and the 2025 production features professionals in many of the lead roles and heading up the creative teams. Students at BOA Stage & Screen Production Academy and BOA Creative, Digital & Performing Arts Academy also take onstage parts and work backstage in a host of positions, from stage management to scenery.

Lorna says the show’s story is also firmly rooted in Birmingham: “The script we originally have is very generic, which means it can be performed anywhere. We then take some bits out and make sure we localise it. All the little things we’ve put in are definitely Birmingham, and that’s important.”

Lorna and Janice were determined the show would be aimed at all the family.

“Audiences are still going to see the traditional Cinderella,” Lorna explains. “The actual story is true to the original, and it will be fun and engaging.

“Directing it has been a joy, and everyone has been fantastic. When you turn up on the first day of rehearsals, all you’ve got is words - and then, all of a sudden, there’s this amazing piece of theatre that young people are going to engage in. That’s a magical thing in itself.

“I think there’s something quite special about working with the young people at BOA. That may be going into the wardrobe department and seeing all these young people making costumes. Or it’s really inspiring to go to make-up and see that these young people have made a make-up board of how they want all the characters to look. It really is in their hands.”

Helping ensure the smooth running of the show is 18-year-old BOA Stage & Screen Production Academy student Beanie Terrington-Burgoyne, who is deputy stage manager (DSM). Currently in her second year of a course in Level 3 Set, Props & Costume, Beanie, who hails from Great Barr, says Cinderella is the most ambitious show she’s worked on so far: “The biggest challenge is the sheer scale of it. The fact that we’re doing 46 shows is a lot. Most shows run for a week at most, but this is five-and-a-half weeks. And we’re doing so many performances for primary schools, which come in the morning, so we’re having to do the show twice a day - in the morning and then evening performances.

“And there’s a lot happening in the show, with a lot of different people involved. There are different crew members who come in and work on different shows, so you never have the same routine. There’s always someone new to work with who has a slightly different way of working. It’s amazing, but it means I constantly have to adapt how I’m calling the show.”

Looking to her future, Beanie believes the experience will be hugely beneficial: “I would love to do touring DSM. Cinderella is really going to help with that because it’s a big show and there’s a lot happening. A lot of that is down to the DSM working with different people. It will give me a good base for the next step.”
Also enjoying the experience and learning new skills is 16-year-old Ellie McNaughton from Worcester. Currently in her first year of a Level 3 Writing, Directing & Screen Craft course at BOA Stage & Screen Production Academy, Ellie takes to the stage in Cinderella as part of the ensemble.

“The course I do at BOA is more focused on screen, and even though I want to do screen and film as a career, I still want to do theatre at the same time because I do miss it.

“Being in Cinderella allows me to do more of what I want to do, which is acting. It’s good to have a really good understanding of both theatre and film. And with theatre, you get to explore other stuff - like dancing and singing - that you don’t get to do so much in film.”

Ellie is just a few months into her course, and becoming involved in Cinderella has given her the chance to work with people she didn’t know - both students and adults: “I’ve enjoyed meeting other people. I didn’t know anybody coming to BOA Stage & Screen, so meeting people in the same college as me who also have an interest in theatre has been really good. And I’ve not worked a lot with adult actors before, so working with professionals is helpful.

“I feel that a lot of young people, when they hear of working with adults, might think it’s a bit scary, but actually they’re just the same as you and very friendly. It’s like the whole cast is one big family or friends group. At the end of the day, they may be older than you or have a different role, but you all have a part to play, so you’re on the same level.”

And Ellie says the show will also be great entertainment for audiences: “Panto is for everybody, whether you’re a kid or an adult. It’s rare in theatre that the audience gets to almost be a part of the show, and that’s why [panto] is so engaging. It’s really exciting and fun. You go to watch it to have a fun time.”

BOA Group presents Cinderella at The Old Rep Theatre, Birmingham, until Wednesday 31 December 

By Diane Parkes