The Complete History of Pantomimes

While pantomime has established itself as a Christmas tradition in the UK, this form of performance didn’t originate there.

Instead, pantomime stems from Ancient Roman times, even before Christianity took over paganism.

Some historians believe that pantomimes were played during the pagan winter solstice festival Saturnalia.

This may be true, but it wasn’t until the Victorian Era that pantomimes became associated with Christmas celebrations.

Despite a common misconception, the art of pantomime isn’t always mute. Indeed, pantomimes were mute and performed by a single actor initially.

But over time, they have been modified numerous times, and modern pantomime has little to do with Roman performances.

Today, pantomimes often involve singing, dancing, slapstick comedy, and nearly always audience engagement.

New stories are introduced, songs are adapted to local aspects, and actor attires change. Yet, the most prominent characteristics of pantomime have survived through centuries and continue to make us laugh even today.

What Is a Pantomime?

A pantomime is a form of theatrical performance that originated in Ancient Rome. Typically, pantomime artists, also known as mimes, remain silent.

So, one could say that mimes bring the phrase “actions speak louder than words” to an entirely new level.

Instead of words, the performance involves extravagant body movements, facial expressions, and interaction with the public.

In addition, the viewers are encouraged to participate in the performance by singing along with the music, shouting out phrases, or doing specific movements.

However, the name of this theatrical performance doesn’t imply that it must be silent. Instead, it implies that a single actor performs all roles.

The word “pantomime” is derived from Latin “pantomimus,” meaning “imitator of all.” Sometimes, pantomimes involve short phrases or dialogues.

Pantomimes in Rome

Rome is the origin of pantomime. The Romans drew inspiration from Greek tragedy but added comedy to it, creating an entirely new genre blend.

The first records of Roman pantomimes date to the second century AD.

However, some historians argue that they were customary in Ancient Roman times during the pagan winter solstice festival Saturnalia, which may explain the pantomime connection with Christmas.

While today, pantomime is often seen as children’s entertainment, Roman pantomime was far from innocent.

According to a Greek orator and author Aelius Aristides who lived in the third century AD, it usually involved erotic content and effeminate dancing.

Traditionally, Roman pantomime was based on a dance of a single actor dressed in a silk tunic, accompanied by choir singing and flute or entire orchestra music. The plot was usually based on Roman or Greek myths.

At that time, this single dancer acted in all roles, thus the name “pantomime.” They heavily relied on masks and hand gestures to express emotions and narrate the story.

The pantomime was one of the favorite forms of entertainment in the Roman Empire until its fall at the end of the fifth century AD.

And even though it fell, the pantomime tradition was preserved in former Roman Empire regions throughout centuries.

In the 16th century, pantomime underwent a real Renaissance in Italy, the descendant of the Roman Empire. Apart from dancing and choir singing, the performance now involved acrobatics and tumbling.

The actor outfits have also changed from silk attires to clothes made from patches, known as harlequin today. In addition, gender roles are commonly reversed, so women played male characters, and men played women.

Pantomimes in the UK

To understand how pantomime became associated with Christmas, we must first learn its history in the UK.

In the Middle Ages, the Brits performed Mummer’s plays based on folk legends. The word “mummer” originates from Middle English for silent, “mum,” or “vermummen,” translating as “to disguise, to mask up.”

Mummer’s plays usually narrated the legend of Saint George and the Dragon. In this story, Saint George, who lived during the fourth century, tamed and defeated a dragon seeking human sacrifices.

The performance involved coarse humor blended with fantasy creatures and traditional “good defeating evil” narrative.

Parallelly, Harlequin pantomimes, also known as harlequinades, were developing in Italy and France.

Over time, the performances were also adopted in Britain and soon became more popular than the folk legend of Saint George. However, the plot of harlequinade remained practically unchanged for over 150 years.

Only by the early 18th century did British pantomime distinguish itself from European plays. Lincoln’s Inn Fields Theatre actors staged plays based on classical stories of English authors and involving ballet and opera.

Until 1843, spoken word was restricted in British theatrical performances. The restriction was lifted just in time – perhaps, the audience started to get bored of watching the same stories in silence for over a century.

Obtaining freedom of expression, British theatres added witty puns, wordplay, and public participation to already familiar plays. In addition, the pantomime was no longer a play of a single actor.

Instead, it featured a wild mix of magical fairytales, social satire, acrobatics, ballet, and opera performed by dozens of actors.

In addition, live animals often appeared on stage, drawing the attention of children to theatrical art.

By the end of the Victorian Era, pantomimes performed on Boxing Day became a nationwide-observed custom.

Pantomimes were now often based on children’s stories to encourage entire families to come to watch them. But despite being a Christmas tradition, pantomimes nearly never made references to the holiday.

Wealthy Brits watched the most extravagant plays shown in Royal theatres that lasted for five hours and featured mind-blowing stage tricks.

The poor, in turn, staged pantomimes at home, using toys, cardboard characters, or dressing up in handmade costumes.

With the raisin popularity of music-hall entertainments in the early 20th century, pantomimes saw a steep decline.

But, even though plays were rarer performed throughout the year, they remained the British favorite Christmas family entertainment.

Pantomimes in the US

Watching Christmas pantomimes is a lesser-known custom in the US than it is in Britain.

Still, historians have recorded numerous instances of pantomime being performed in American theatre since 1786. So, naturally, the art was brought here by British colonists.

The first pantomime in the US was performed by actors of Saint John’s Theatre in New York and narrated the story of Robinson Crusoe. It’s considered the most popular pantomime in the US that counts over 1,300 performances.

Modern American pantomime is typically based on fairytales adapted to Christmas stories and features slapstick comedy, audience participation, popular songs, and local references.

Today, some of the most audience-favored stories are A Cinderella Christmas, A Snow-White Christmas, and good old Robinson Crusoe.

Pantomimes in Other Cultures

Apart from the UK, pantomime is commonly performed in Italy, Ireland, Switzerland, Cana, Jamaica, Australia, Malta, and South Africa.

One thing remains unchanged regardless of the region -plays are shown during the Christmas season. Pantomimes were brought to most of these countries by British immigrants.

In Ireland, pantomime is highly popular among amateur dramatic societies and is performed from November to February, known as the pantomime season.

That’s no wonder, as Ireland was once a part of the British Empire and thus shares history and culture with its northern neighbor.

Pantomimes were introduced in Jamaica in the early 1940s. While plays are traditionally performed at Christmas time, they are commonly based on Jamaican folklore.

The same blend of local culture and Christmas stories can be seen in Andorra and Malta. While pantomime has seen a decline in popularity after these regions acquired independence from Britain, the tradition remains strong.

Pantomime Conventions

Historically, pantomime follows certain conventions. While none of them are mandatory, these aspects help to identify a pantomime to this day unmistakably.

So, since the Roman Empire times, leading male character, typically juvenile, is performed by women dressed in male clothes. Elderly women, in turn, are usually played by men.

Talking about the content of a pantomime, it often involves puns with double entendre that make plays appealing both for children and grown-ups.

The audience commonly hisses to villains, encourages protagonists, exclaims phrases like “He’s behind you!” or answers “yes” and “no,” as if taking part in the character’s faith.

The “He’s behind you!” custom originates from classical British pantomimes, where characters would sit on a bench, singing a jolly song.

Then, someone they fear, such as a ghost or a wolf, would appear behind them, and the audience would start shouting the phrase to warn protagonists about danger.

People in animal costumes perform animals, often two people dressed as a cow or horse.

However, from the Victorian Era and until the early 20th century, real animals were also common on stage. Today, this practice isn’t as widely observed due to increased public awareness about animal harassment.

Pantomime music is customarily either folklore, popular, or classical music, but with adapted lyrics. The chorus sometimes remains unchanged to allow the audience to participate in performing the songs.

Slapstick comedy became popular in the Victorian Era and involved messy substance throwing. Often, its humor revolves around baking and similar scenes that make such a farce seem natural.