Pantomime dame

Pantomime dame

A pantomime dame is a traditional character in British pantomime. It is a continuation of en travesti portrayal of female characters by male actors in drag. They are played either in an extremely camp style, often but not exclusively by actors well-known for their homosexuality or effeminacy, or else by men acting 'butch' in women's clothing.

One example is Widow Twankey in the British pantomime version of the "Aladdin" story. In "Monty Python's Flying Circus" ( [http://www.ibras.dk/montypython/episode30.htm Episode 30] ) non-British viewers were puzzled by the nature-film sequence in which the Pantomime Princess Margaret, lurking in the undergrowth harpooned a silver breakfast tray that was scuttling down the woodland trail: "The unsuspecting breakfast glides ever closer to its doom..."

Notable Pantomime Dames in Britain

*Douglas Byng (1893-1988) - A legendary dame who appeared in over 50 pantomimes, Byng was also a noted cabaret and revue artiste. He was the first glamorous dame and designed all his own costumes.
*Paul Barrett - Resident dame for the Citadel Arts Centre in St. Helens.
*Christopher Biggins - TV personality, actor
*Norman Evans - "Evans' distinctive dame evolved out of nosy neighbour Fanny Fairbottom, a character he played on the sketch show "Mr Tower of London". Fanny was hugely popular, and allegedly inspired Les Dawson to create the character of Ada" [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2005/12/14/btpanto14.xml&sSheet=/arts/2005/12/14/ixartleft.html]
*Melvyn Hayes - TV personality, actor
*John Inman - Camp comedy actor well-known for playing Mr Humphries in TV's "Are You Being Served?"
*Berwick Kaler - Currently Britain's longest serving, Kaler has played his extremely non-camp dame at York Theatre Royal since 1977
*Sir Ian McKellen - Theatre and film actor, famous for playing the role of Gandalf in "The Lord Of The Rings" film trilogy.
*George Lacey - "Widely regarded as the greatest dame of his generation, Lacey played more than 60 dames between 1923, when he was 19, and 1984" [http://www.telegraph.co.uk/arts/main.jhtml?xml=/arts/2005/12/14/btpanto14.xml&sSheet=/arts/2005/12/14/ixartleft.html]
*James Rogers - The first actor to play Widow Twankey, in the 1861 pantomime at the Strand Theatre. Twankey was a popular brand of Chinese green tea
*Danny La Rue - veteran drag artist
*"Little Tich" - Harry Relph
*Jack Tripp - February 4, 1922 - July 10, 2005
*Tommy Trafford - Lancashire comedian
*Christopher Friar - Dame Molly in Peter Pan, Glasgow 2007
*Patrick Fyffe - creator of Dame Hilda Bracket


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • pantomime dame — ˌpantomime ˈdame [pantomime dame] (also dame) noun (BrE) a female character in a ↑pantomime …   Useful english dictionary

  • pantomime dame — ➡ dame * * * …   Universalium

  • pantomime dame — /pæntəmaɪm ˈdeɪm/ (say pantuhmuym daym) noun a coarse, ludicrous female character in a pantomime, traditionally played by a man …  

  • dame — ► NOUN 1) (Dame) (in the UK) the title of a woman awarded a knighthood, equivalent to Sir. 2) N. Amer. informal a woman. 3) (also pantomime dame) Brit. a comic female character in pantomime, played by a man. ORIGIN Old French, from Latin domina… …   English terms dictionary

  • Pantomime — For other uses, see Pantomime (disambiguation). The Christmas Pantomime colour lithograph bookcover, 1890, showing the harlequinade characters Pantomime (informally, panto) not to be confused with a mime artist, a theatrical performer of mime is… …   Wikipedia

  • dame — noun 1》 (Dame) (in the UK) the title given to a woman with the rank of Knight Commander or holder of the Grand Cross in the Orders of Chivalry. 2》 archaic or humorous an elderly or mature woman.     ↘N. Amer. informal a woman.     ↘(also… …   English new terms dictionary

  • Dame — A Dame may be: Dame (title), a female title of rank, equivalent to Sir used as the title of a knight A title of respect for certain Benedictine nuns equivalent to the male Dom A pantomime dame An old word for the game pieces in the game of… …   Wikipedia

  • dame — [ deım ] noun count 1. ) AMERICAN INFORMAL OLD FASHIONED a woman. It is sometimes used in a humorous way, but many women find it offensive. 2. ) Dame used in front of the name of a woman who has been given a special honor by the British… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • dame — [deım] n [Date: 1200 1300; : Old French; Origin: Latin domina lady of high rank ] 1.) AmE old fashioned informal a woman 2.) BrE a humorous female character in a ↑pantomime (=a special play at Christmas) who is played by a man …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • dame — UK [deɪm] / US noun [countable] Word forms dame : singular dame plural dames 1) a) Dame used in front of the name of a woman who has been given a special honour by the British government Dame Joan Sutherland b) someone who has this title She… …   English dictionary

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