Hi I’m Rebecca and I play the Narrator and Ensemble in SMP’s debut production of ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’ written by Warren McWilliams and directed by Chris O’Shea. I am thrilled to be writing the blog for what is set to be our last opening night performance at the historic ‘Intimate Theatre’.

This production has been a special one for us all at SMP. The Intimate Theatre has been another home for all past and present members of the group over the last 60 years and it is an honour for us to be the last group to perform here. It has been wonderful to see so many members of the group come back to join us for this production on and off stage and as audience members and we hope to see more of you during the week to celebrate our history together.

It is important also for us to look forward and we have had some wonderful ‘firsts’ in this production. It is the first time this script is being performed, it is the first production choreographed by Wendy Cooper and Hayley McCara. It is also the first production musically directed by Kate Sanders. We are extremely proud of Wendy, Hayley and Kate and look forward to having them on the production teams for future shows.

The rehearsal process has been a lot of fun and this is a show we are very proud of. We are delighted to now be performing to live audiences. Our opening night audience was superb! There was booing (in the right places) cheering, applause and we heard a lot of dirty laughs for some of the more questionable lines in the show!

The atmosphere for this show is electric. We have sold out of tickets for our last performance on Sunday and tickets for all of our other shows are flying!

Please do join us for a wonderful show. You can book your tickets here:

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

Hi I’m Rebecca and I play the Narrator and Ensemble in SMP’s debut production of ‘Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs’ written by Warren McWilliams and directed by Chris O’Shea. I am thrilled to be writing the blog for what is set to be our last opening night performance at the historic ‘Intimate Theatre’.

This production has been a special one for us all at SMP. The Intimate Theatre has been another home for all past and present members of the group over the last 60 years and it is an honour for us to be the last group to perform here. It has been wonderful to see so many members of the group come back to join us for this production on and off stage and as audience members and we hope to see more of you during the week to celebrate our history together.

It is important also for us to look forward and we have had some wonderful ‘firsts’ in this production. It is the first time this script is being performed, it is the first production choreographed by Wendy Cooper and Hayley McCara. It is also the first production musically directed by Kate Sanders. We are extremely proud of Wendy, Hayley and Kate and look forward to having them on the production teams for future shows.

The rehearsal process has been a lot of fun and this is a show we are very proud of. We are delighted to now be performing to live audiences. Our opening night audience was superb! There was booing (in the right places) cheering, applause and we heard a lot of dirty laughs for some of the more questionable lines in the show!

The atmosphere for this show is electric. We have sold out of tickets for our last performance on Sunday and tickets for all of our other shows are flying!

Please do join us for a wonderful show. You can book your tickets here:

——————————-

Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

After many long months of intense rehearsals by the cast, director, musical director, choreographer; hours of exhausting theatre preparation by the backstage crew as well as costume design, prop gathering, lighting, the list goes on. Tonight was the first performance of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to a real live audience on Community Night.

This is the 3rd SMP show I’ve been involved with as support crew, and this week follow spot, aiming the spotlight.

Excitement built as the audience took their seats for Community Night (I spotted at least one Snow White hopeful) and the start of what is to be the final show at The Intimate Theatre. I put on my headphones ready for the show to start, the instruction ‘House Lights down’ signalled it was time for the performance to begin, oh no it wasn’t, oh yes it was (you get the idea).

The 5 strong live band started the performance with a rousing overture setting a lively mood. As soon as the curtains opened, revealing the spectacular set of a castle interior, the audience was entranced. Scene after scene, the stage was brought to life by the superb acting, dancing and singing on stage enhanced by the luminous lighting, perfect props, spectacular set and seamless scene changes (don’t mention the cauldron).

Everyone in the audience were spell bound by the evil Queen (boo, hisssssss), enchanted by beautiful Snow White, laughing along with hilarious Muddles (tell us a joke you funny bloke!), and swooning at handsome Prince Louis.

Heading towards the closing scenes, not a spoiler as EVERYONE knows the original story of Snow White, when good triumphs over evil audience participation reached its peak when golden ticket holders from the audience were welcomed to the stage for a traditional, ‘do do, d, do do’ sing along with the cast.

Feeling drained from the rollercoaster of emotions throughout the show, the audience easily relaxed into the finale. The evil queen got her comeuppance, and Snow White married her Prince; all went happy ever afterly in true McWilliams pantomime style, until the next performance.

Cheers and applause, echoed around the theatre, it couldn’t have been a better start to the final show at the Intimate Theatre. I’m so glad I will be at every performance, so I get to see this super talented group of people (that includes all involved) LOADS of times. Get your tickets now, before it’s too late (if you come tonight, and love it, you can come Friday, Saturday and Sunday (if you book quickly!!!!)

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

‘Mirror mirror on the Wall, who’s the fairest of them all?’

Now usually I’d answer and tell that wicked old Queenie that Snow White is the fairest (Spoiler alert) but after tonight I have to say all of these beauties on stage (and off) who have worked their hardest to bring you the ‘Greatest Show’ you’ll see and the best send off for The Intimate – so the mirror has spoken and the fairest has to be everyone who has helped this amazing script become a spectacular show!

Not only does the stage ‘Come Alive’ as the colourful costumes dance around the stage, which are even more beautiful under the bright lights and quirky sets – you’re in for a treat when you see this. The jokes will have you laughing out loud and the songs will make you want to clap along and tap your toes.

Everyone’s been working so hard, ‘9 to 5’ (and longer I’d say) to really make this show something special. You can feel the excitement from the minute you enter the theatre until you get home and the buzz is making me giddy that community night is tomorrow and we open on Thursday!

This is my first panto and first show with SMP and I just have to add how wonderful and welcoming the group are and how much I’ve loved working with and meeting each and every one of you – cast, creatives, production team and crew alike.

So my one word of advice my fellow Enfieldonians and people from kingdoms all over the land, ‘Move Your Feet’ and book a seat as fast as you can.

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

The Tech Run!

Well here we are in the last stages of preparation for our pantomime, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

It’s very sad that this will be the last ever tech run at the Intimate Theatre, which will be closing it’s doors after our show, with plans for it to be demolished. However, there was a buzz as usual, as cast and crew met in a crescendo of music, costume, scenery and lights. There was of course the odd hiccup, as it was the first time the cast got to perform on stage with scenery and props, and the first time the crew saw the show. But everyone pulled together, and after months of hard work from the entire team it is all starting to become real.

This is my first time as musical director, and sitting in the pit last night, looking up at my SMP family on stage singing their hearts out, I couldn’t be prouder. After a long night of hard work, the tech rehearsal finally came to an end, and everyone got to go home for a well deserved sleep.

Most likely dreaming of singing and dancing at our home away from home for the week, and looking forward to the dress run!

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

Band Call –

Hi, I’m Mike Benyon, veteran member of SMP since 1992. Having musically directed the last four pantomimes this time I am assisting Kate Sanders who has taken up the reins magnificently for the first time.

One of my jobs has been to put the band together. We had two extremely long band rehearsals over the weekend in our regular weekend rehearsal space in Enfield. I have been very lucky over the years to have a regular and very talented group of musicians. Indeed, this year the band includes Paul Denham (bass) who first played for us in the 1994 production of Aladdin and John Fossey who first played in the 1998 production of Peter Pan.

We had the headache this year that our regular drummer, the legendary Chris “Chunk” Wall has hung up his sticks due to moving out of the area and our other guitarist, the brilliant Tim Hall has a prior family engagement the week of the show. However if the weekend’s rehearsals were anything to go by we have managed to find great replacements in Minty Bop Hopkins, who takes over on drums and Steve Jones, father of the choreographer Wendy, who provides a new dimension to the band with a second keyboard part.

What has impressed me so much is that this group of musicians have clearly spent a lot of time working on the songs before turning up to the rehearsals. However  talented and accomplished musicians in the West End are, I can guarantee that they just turn up to rehearsals and just sight read the music!

After our two long rehearsals (accompanied in no small part by the local cat Billy who is resident at the venue) the cast joined us for the band call. This is always one of the most exciting times for both the band and the cast as it is the first real glimpse of what the audience will be hearing. There did seem to be a good buzz about the overall effect (you can usually detect groans and grumbles if things aren’t going too well). We have a few ambitious numbers in this show but the cast and production team have worked tirelessly to ensure that the songs are performed to a very high standard.

It has been a huge pleasure to work on this show with Chris O’Shea who is directing his second SMP show. Wendy Cooper (choreographer) and Kate Sanders (musical director) are both making their debuts in their respective roles but they are both clearly very talented and have been very passionate about producing a great show.

On a final note SMP has been my second home since 1992 and the friendliness of the group has played a huge part in my longevity.  It is very sad that having been in the pit for the last 27 SMP pantomimes at the Intimate Theatre this looks like being the last one there. Still, I’m sure that as always the group will go from strength to strength at its new venue.

Get in –

While the excited cast and super band were rehearsing hard at the scout hut, our trusty crew were lifting set, plotting lights and setting up sound at the theatre…needless to say the cast were buzzing to hear we were allowed to join our incredibly hard working crew and see the set so far…eeeek. There is a very important task to undertake as soon as we arrive though…and that’s order pizza, wahoo. It’s become tradition at SMP to don our onesies, order pizza and play “question time” with the newbies. We’re not being lazy, honest, we’d only get in the way of the crew if we were to attempt to help out. Once we’ve treated the crew to some much deserved dinner it’s all hands back on deck. The crew get straight back to work on stage, while the cast practice routines with their brilliantly made props, thanks to the wonderful Debbie Wall, and our FOH team continue to set up the bar and foyer display. Our costume team can be seen hurriedly finishing costumes while our creative team are making changes to the spacing on stage. It’s a very busy but buzzing time for us all. Finally the cast make it on stage to try out the biggest dance numbers of the show with the set, and we all get over excited again…even though many of us have been on that stage a hundred times, the feeling of joy never goes away, and there’s something even more special this year as we know our footprints may be the last. Long live the wonderful Intimate Theatre and the priceless memories made there. – Jo McWilliams

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

Hi Ho everyone! I’m Sophie and I play Prof Dwarf in Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs.

This is my first show with SMP and I am having such a blast! It has been fantastic working alongside such a talented cast and production team and each and every one of them have made me feel so welcome – I can’t wait to get up on stage with them all next week! As a newbie of the company, I have been so impressed by the sheer amount of hard work and love that has been put into this production from everyone involved, whether it been in the cast, writing, direction, choreography, musical direction, costume, set-design, props, stage crew, promo, band, front of house….the list goes on!

Everyone has put in so much effort, with the biggest of smiles and support, to create something amazing and I feel really proud to be a part of it. I’ve never been part of an amateur dramatic group which has felt so professional yet so friendly and I’m so excited to finally share with our audiences the end result of all our hard work next week! So here’s a quick update from me on our final two rehearsals before we move into the theatre and show week begins! Oh the excitement!

Monday was spent running the abridged version of the show that we will be performing for the first of the epic “3 Show Saturday” at 11am. There are a few sections of scenes as well as couple of songs and dances which have been cut from this version, just to knock off a bit of time. It means we all had to pay attention, as it affects many of our cues and costume changes throughout the show. Here’s hoping we don’t get too confused – Saturday is sure to be a whirlwind of a day!

On Wednesday, we did one last full run of the show so our production team could give us their final notes before we move into the theatre. The show has come together so magnificently and now it’s just the final tweeking to be made. It’s going to be such a spectacle once we put it on the stage alongside our set, lights, costume & props – Eeeeeeeee!!

You may have seen that each day this week, a new promo picture or video is being released via the SMP Facebook page, so keep your eyes peeled and please share with your friends! Thank you Yiltan Kemal for your work on the pictures, they look great!

Excitement is really building now and we’re all so ready for show week! If you haven’t got your tickets booked yet – now is the time! You’re in for such a treat! Our panto is packed full of spectacular song & dance, hilarious script, entertaining characters and brilliant comedy! And with it being the final show to be performed at the Intimate Theatre – it’s extra special! Don’t miss it! See you there!

https://www.facebook.com/stmonicaplayers/videos/2006343942784252/

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

It’s our last blog before we have a short break from rehearsals and celebrate Christmas and what better way to sign off in style than with this from the show’s ‘Monty’, Connor Raleigh.

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

It’s beginning to feel a lot like Christmas and the last week has been a joyous explosion of rehearsals.

Monday saw us at Holtwhites Cricket Club for a dance re-cap. This is a great venue and we are very grateful for the team there for letting us use it. We danced our way through a number of complicated routines that saw dwarfs pitted against baddies….no spoiler alerts, I won’t reveal the song…but I will say it is one of the greatest!

Wednesday it was time to run Act Two and it was a great opportunity to see how it all fits together with the acting, singing and dancing seamlessly taking us through the family favourite story but with some added pizzazz courtesy of Warren’s script.

Sunday was a busy busy day – everyone in hair and makeup for our front of house pictures and then our first costume run!! Always a chaotic experience as you realise you have about 2 minutes to get from baddie to villager and back to baddie! This time last year I was a mermaid sister and although I am missing the glitter our fabulous team of Fay, Ellie and Debbie have ensured all the costumes for this show are of their usual high standard and will look great on stage.

Our cast were out, early sunday morning doing some promo shots and a video so keep your eyes peeled for that. Big thanks to Yiltan Kemal for taking the shots.

We will be singing some Christmas carols and party favourites at Southgate Station in the evening on Monday 10th December, come along and say hello.

And if you are stuck for a Christmas gift then why not buy tickets for our show….it will be our last one at The Intimate and we are going out on a high, this really will be a pantomime to remember and all the family will love it.

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

What’s on at The Intimate this year? 

Hello there people of Panto-land and thanks for popping into our Snow White blog. I am Prince Louis and this week it’s my turn to fill you in on what has been happening down in the far away land of rehearsals.

On Monday, we were all at home pulling on our leg warmers and rehearsal leotards (mine is a lovely shade of khaki!), preparing for an evening of dance recaps, when we received word from Mrs Fair Lady Choreographer to say that she was unwell. One of the many good things about being part of SMP, is the communication channel. We are all part of the Snow White cast page and some members are also part of their own WhatsApp groups -The dwarfs for instance have their own group where, I presume, they chat about diamond mining; whistling happy tunes and other such things. Luckily, Mr Handsome Lord Director was on hand to tweak the ever-efficient schedule and made sure we all knew to remove the rehearsal leotards and prepare for a full run of act 1 instead.

So, it was with great excitement (and only a little bit of trepidation due to a lack of line learning) that we all arrived for the run through. A run through is always good fun because it is the first time that we all get a proper chance to see what everyone else has been working on In their rehearsal slots. Seeing all of the scenes together along with the numerous song and dance numbers, really does bring it all to life. The first run through Is generally full of laughter due to unrehearsed muck ups and stumbles over lines and choreography. This was certainly no exception and we all giggled our way through lots of expertly styled out errors. On a serious note, the early run throughs are a really useful tool to highlight the areas that we need to work on a bit more and occasionally for Mr Handsome Lord Director, to see if anything isn’t working and needs changing (obviously this hardly ever happens because Mr Handsome Lord Director is very skilled and doesn’t generally make mistakes!). There is a lot of strong camaraderie between the cast members and it is always really lovely to come together for these run throughs where it really highlights and strengthens the friendships and teamwork that make SMP such a wonderful group to be a part of. There is always a lot of love in the room (and oodles of humorous banter!).

On Wednesday, we were all very pleased to see Mrs Fair Lady Choreographer back on her feet and slipped into her sleek and perfectly contoured rehearsal leotard. We gathered to recap the dance numbers so far. It is always lovely to have dance recaps because you get to see the improvement in everyone week by week. It is really reassuring to see just how great the musical numbers are looking and sounding at this stage. It just shows what great talent we are blessed to have in SMP.

After recaps, Mrs Fair Lady Choreographer taught us all the show finale. The finale is always a tricky one because you have the bows interspersed throughout it, but you want to get a good balance of choreography at the same time. I think that Miss Fair Lady Choreographer did a fantastic job and we all finished the session with rosy cheeks and big smiles.

Finishing rehearsals with big smiles is a general part of being a member of SMP and I am so glad that I have been able to return for Snow White. I am having such fun and I know that this is going to be a wonderful show. Make sure that you don’t miss the chance to see it. Book your tickets now.

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

What’s on at The Intimate this year? 

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…….” ooops sorry that is the beginning of the book I am reading at the mo” A Tale of Two Cities ” by Dickens and not my emotional response to belonging  to SMP in anyway what so ever. So anyone who has ever thought that amateur dramatics was all about glitz and glamour, fabulous costumes and great singing will be sorely disappointed when I tell you that my journey to rehearsals usually begins waiting at a freezing cold bus stop in the middle of November

Once on the bus all is well

And lets see who we shall meet when we arrive at our rehearsal space “The Intimate Theatre”.

Its getting near to Christmas and scenes and dance routines are gradually embedding themselves in -well sort of- and as we go near the door there are always some strange creatures lurking by

As we enter our fabulous rehearsal space we find that some nice metal poles have been put up in the middle of where we dance so are waiting for them to be cleared away. As we wait we get to meet our fabulous cast of Dwarfs

Our fabulous choreographer , Wendy “Shirley Ballas” Cooper

Our director Christopher “don’t mention the squeaky chicken” O’Shea

Who also appears to be boring to death our Maroulla”Grumbly” Wilks later on.

With various people dropping in and out of rehearsals it is actually the time of year when the majority of the cast realise that they don’t have a clue what is going on with most of the numbers and chaos ensues

A rather delightful moment of the evening was with Wendy, Christopher and Lynzey were learning the basics of the “Macarena”

Please note Lynzey did not receive any signs of physical damage -only psychological ones!!!. Out of the chaos comes are gorgeous Carla “I’m a celebrity” Segel

Who calming but firmly tells us the correct steps we should be doing and tries to stop Jenny “Warren McWilliams made me do it ” Storey from arabesqueing

So with all the madness the final part is something we call “FD’s” no idea what they are but you can make up your mind looking at the picture

So all is chugging along merrily and I hope that can come and see our show in the new Year. The final pictures are of an award winning actor pondering and musing on his enjoyment of life

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…….” ooops sorry that is the beginning of the book I am reading at the mo” A Tale of Two Cities ” by Dickens and not my emotional response to belonging  to SMP in anyway what so ever. So anyone who has ever thought that amateur dramatics was all about glitz and glamour, fabulous costumes and great singing will be sorely disappointed when I tell you that my journey to rehearsals usually begins waiting at a freezing cold bus stop in the middle of November

Once on the bus all is well

And lets see who we shall meet when we arrive at our rehearsal space “The Intimate Theatre”.

Its getting near to Christmas and scenes and dance routines are gradually embedding themselves in -well sort of- and as we go near the door there are always some strange creatures lurking by

As we enter our fabulous rehearsal space we find that some nice metal poles have been put up in the middle of where we dance so are waiting for them to be cleared away. As we wait we get to meet our fabulous cast of Dwarfs

Our fabulous choreographer , Wendy “Shirley Ballas” Cooper

Our director Christopher “don’t mention the squeaky chicken” O’Shea

Who also appears to be boring to death our Maroulla”Grumbly” Wilks later on.

With various people dropping in and out of rehearsals it is actually the time of year when the majority of the cast realise that they don’t have a clue what is going on with most of the numbers and chaos ensues

A rather delightful moment of the evening was with Wendy, Christopher and Lynzey were learning the basics of the “Macarena”

Please note Lynzey did not receive any signs of physical damage -only psychological ones!!!. Out of the chaos comes are gorgeous Carla “I’m a celebrity” Segel

Who calming but firmly tells us the correct steps we should be doing and tries to stop Jenny “Warren McWilliams made me do it ” Storey from arabesqueing

So with all the madness the final part is something we call “FD’s” no idea what they are but you can make up your mind looking at the picture

So all is chugging along merrily and I hope that can come and see our show in the new Year. The final pictures are of an award winning actor pondering and musing on his enjoyment of life

Following on from sensational performances in both Urinetown and Spamalot, it was not a shock to receive a call requesting me to be a part of SMP’s 2019 pantomime, Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs.

“Archie,” Director Chris O’Shea said to me in a brief but meaningful phone call, “you don’t need to audition, I have the perfect part in mind for you. I’d like you to help bring to life one of the most cherished and adored moments of the story.” Graciously, I accepted.

Having proven myself over the last two years, and gained considerable positive publicity for the group, I was excited to find out what challenge would be thrown my way next. I think perhaps I had not prepared myself adequately for just how much whistling-whilst-working would be required for my role.

Nevertheless, I entered into the spirit in my usual manner, fully trying to explore what it might be like for a woodland creature whose sole purpose in life is to clean a squalid house belonging to sanitation-apathetic dwarfs.

It was a long and arduous process, however I really feel like I’ve developed an in-depth understanding of the character, enabling me to beautifully portray the multi-layered ambivalence this rabbit feels towards his cleaning responsibilities.

This was, however, achieved in the first week of the rehearsal process.

We are now two months into the schedule, and I am beginning to get increasingly weary of Ellie Ashby incessantly commanding me to clean through the medium of song.

I have explained in clear terms to Chris O’Shea that my role needs to be expanded if he wishes to fully take advantage my talents, and he has taken these comments on board with the introduction of new scenes. I have read through the script multiple times, but I am still not sure where my new 45 minute scene of polishing his shoes fits into the overall structure of the piece. We have rehearsed this six times over the course of the last three weeks. A less trusting rabbit would have grounds to question the director’s motivation, although I have faith that this is part of his vision and that everything will fall into place as the rehearsal process progresses.

And so, on to a round up of the events of the week. On Monday, the cast learnt the routine for ‘Diamonds are a Girl’s Best Friend’. I cleaned a candlestick.

On Wednesday, the cast learnt the finale number. I polished Chris O’Shea’s shoes. Again. They are trainers. I haven’t the heart to tell him you don’t really polish trainers, as I am decent and kind-hearted rabbit. Also, I really don’t want him to get mad and cut this scene from the show.

If I am completely honest, I can’t help but feel that my artistic proficiency is not being fully appreciated in this production. Whilst I have become incredibly accomplished at cleaning Cannon House, I would be better suited for a great number of the roles in the show. For instance, if kept in its current format, the show should really be retitled to “Snow White, the five Dwarfs and the two Giants”. Jenny Storey and John Stivey are both 6ft tall, and clearly not dwarf-sized. I am an actor of petite proportions, and would be much better placed than either of these gigantic imposters to play one of the seven titular dwarfs. Also, I am really beginning to tire of John bringing trophies to rehearsals to make me polish them.

Please do come and see the show. I will strive to give my loyal fans the exceptional level of performance they have come to expect despite the material I have been given to work with, however if nothing else, The Intimate Theatre will be really clean. Also, Chris O’Shea will be wearing very shiny shoes.

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

What’s on at The Intimate this year? 

Hi (ho!) you lovely Panto goers,

After a couple of shows off  I am very excited to be back for Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I will be performing as Lazy Dwarf – such a hard task! 😉 . I have been lucky enough to have been part of this company since 2003, but my first Pantomime was back in 2009 performing as Blusher (Dwarf) the last time we performed Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. I am sure it will be a fabulous but also an emotional show. My first time performing at The Intimate Theatre was in Snow White, which will most likely be our last performance here too.

We had an exciting and very busy week at rehearsals last week. Monday the Dwarfs and featured dancers were called for singing with Kate and Mike and choreography with Wendy to learn ‘Faith’ (you may recognise this from Sing!). This was such a fun song and dance to learn, so energetic and will be sure to leave you all grinning from ear to ear. During the evening there was a production meeting to discuss all the arrangements for the week such as lighting, set design and staging. We can’t wait to find out what they have in store for us all!

Wednesday everyone was called at various time throughout the evening for a fun and jam packed agenda. From learning new songs, adding principals to songs previously taught to ensemble and also setting some of the last few remaining scenes with Chris. It has all come together so well, and I can’t believe that everything is nearly set. During the evening some of us met with Fay & Ellie for costume fitting, and I had fun jumping back into that Dwarf outfit again after so many years.

We’re all really looking forward to setting our final pieces over the next few rehearsals and seeing them all come together in our first run (oh yes we are!).

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

What’s on at The Intimate this year? 

I’m Hayley Buck, assistant choreographer for SMP’s next panto, Snow White!

I am sooo excited to be back doing what I love after a 6 year absence and working with such a talented cast and production team! It’s been a very busy week to say the least!

So, on Monday, we set ‘Queen of the Night’ one of the biggest numbers in the show for me! I don’t want to give too much away, but our amazing Queen and feature dancers absolutely smashed the choreo! Be prepared for some serious sass and a bit of vogueing!!

Whilst all this was going, the fabulous Chris o Shea, our director was busy working on scenes with the dwarfs (how many are there of you? Lol)

Wednesday, Halloween night at rehearsals…woohaaa!! Another jam packed evening for our cast! The spooktastic and very talented Mike Benyon showcased his brilliant song, written especially for us, sang beautifully by Joe K, our Prince, with backing from the rest of the cast!

This was followed by a costume fitting, organised by the fab Fay Kemal.

And if that wasn’t enough, there was treats for all in the form of cup cakes! Yum yum

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

What’s on at The Intimate this year? 

And… 5,6,7,8… Well, hello there! I am Wendy Cooper, Choreographer for SMP’s Snow White.

This is the first show I’ve choreographed for SMP & I am having the BEST time! Whilst it feels really strange being stood at the front of the room, the cast have been so welcoming and encouraging! This week has been jam packed full of new songs, scenes and spooktacular fun!! We stared the week with an evening of dance and singing recaps. The cast did brilliantly and by the end of the evening everything was looking and sounding great! Especially the Act 1 finale… ahhh this is going to be THE Greatest Show…!

The whole cast have worked so so hard and seeing our ideas and choreography come to life, has been magical! Of course, I must say a big thank you to the wonderful Hayley Buckmaster for her support as Assistant Choreographer and a big BIG thank you to all the cast for their hard work so far. Keep it going guys & gals!

It has been an absolute joy working being part of the production team for Snow White. Our fabulous MD Kate Sanders has worked her magic with the cast and the songs are sounding absolutely stunning, with some great arrangements from Mr Mike Benyon as Assistant M.D. I just need to make sure the dancing allows them to sing it all! Hehe!

The scenes are really taking shape too. Our super Director, Chris O’Shea is really bringing this show to life and I am loving seeing how the characters are developing. Of course, we are hugely lucky to have another brilliant script from Warren McWilliams again, and I have to say, this is my favourite!!!

This panto is packed full of brilliant characters and comedy, one not to be missed! And, as mentioned last week, sadly this could be the last show to be held at the Intimate Theatre before it is demolished. I’ll keep playing the lottery in the hope I win, can buy the theatre and refurbish it to its former glory… and in the meantime just hope that the petitioning from local groups helps save or perhaps influence a little re-think on the theatre’s future. If you would like to sign the petition, you can find it here https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/save-the-intimate-theatre-palmers-green

On a happier note, this weekend also saw our awesome SMP family celebrating all things spooky with a Halloween movie night including fancy dress, treats and lots of fun! And, the ghoulish fun continued into Sunday too, where we were invited by Friends of Bury Lodge Park to support their Halloween Spooktakular afternoon of arts, and crafts, with story time and songs from SMP! A brilliant afternoon and a great opportunity to hand out some flyers to the families at the event too! Anyway, enough chatting… I must get back to choreographing the next number!! Ready… and 5,6,7,8… It’s not too early to get booking your tickets!!! Don’t make me send the wicked Queen after you…!!!

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

What’s on at The Intimate this year? 

Hello everyone, this is Carl, I am very excited to be in this show as ensemble and King and my bad choice in second wives starts the cogs turning on this story, wonderfully adapted for SMP by the talented Warren McWilliams. On Monday, we were working hard (not quite 9 to 5) on one of the numbers full of taptastic joy and also fish slapping!! The Dwarfs were also off to work on their scenes. For Wednesday’s rehearsal, I wasn’t needed as the dwarfs were doing more acting.

The production team are certainly working us all very hard to get the best out of all the cast, so I’m sure you can imagine being in SMP is great for your fitness levels. So, if you want a fun way of dropping a few pounds then joining an amateur theatre company is a great way to do it!

It may have passed you by, but on the 10th October it was World Mental Health Awareness Day. According to Mental Health foundation it is estimated that 1 in 6 people in the past week experienced a common mental health problem. I know from my personal experience with anxiety how much being in a theatre company has helped me. Being part of a group that is more like a family has had such a positive impact on my mental wellness.

Obviously there are many types social groups out there, from walking clubs, book clubs and also amateur dramatics. Mind.org.uk suggests that making new connections through social groups may be one of the easiest ways to reduce some of the symptoms of mental illness.

With over 900,000 people in London suffering from a mental disorder, we need more investment in community and social groups, not less. So please support your local theatre groups. It seems sad that we may be losing another local theatre, with the planned demolition of the Intimate Theatre. Now, I know that SMP will continue on strong if we do lose the Intimate. However, it will be cause difficulties and will be a sad loss for the community and the community groups that use the theatre. So please support us in our fight to save the Intimate and come and see us in what may be our last panto there.

So go out there be physically and mentally healthy!

Important links https://www.mind.org.uk The London Mental Health Report

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Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here:

What’s on at The Intimate this year? 

Hello lovely people, and welcome to this week’s instalment of the Snow White blog! I’m Ellie and I am lucky enough to be playing Snow White in our panto this year. Being part of SMP panto is always such a treat but I have to admit that wearing a princess dress and a tiara makes it even more enjoyable.

Monday’s rehearsal of this week was very exciting indeed as we got to work on setting our spectacular Act One finale. We sang through the arrangement last week with our marvellous MD’s Kate Sanders and Mike Benyon, so it was great to set it as well.

It’s definitely the song that I’ve been most looking forward to working on since it was played at Read Through. I’m afraid that I can’t tell you what song it is but I will say that it is the one you’ve been waiting for….

It’s a big song and dance number involving the entire cast (if you know what show that’s from, 500 points to you, well done) so everyone was called, as were both of our choreographers! That’s right: it’s such a big number that our two wonderful choreographers, Wendy Cooper and Hayley McAra, have had to split it between them.

Wendy took myself, the seven dwarfs, the Prince and his valet, aka the goodies, to learn our sections whilst Hayley was in charge of our incredible featured dancers, ensemble, minions and other baddies headed up by our very scary Evil Queen Joanna McWilliams (don’t believe it when she calls you a cherub peach, she’s actually very mean and keeps trying to force feed me apples…).

Our team captain, head honcho, top man director Chris O’Shea was also busy, running scenes with those of us who had a spare moment between dancing. Scene rehearsals have been so much fun this year as once again we have such a funny original script to work with, written by the incomparable Warren McWilliams, who definitely hasn’t paid me to say this.

Whilst we’re only a few weeks into our rehearsals I’m confident to say that this show is already shaping up to be a really fun, family friendly, magical panto. The whole directorial team are doing a brilliant job and have selected a great soundtrack for the show, with songs to please everyone in the family. The costumes I’ve seen so far are as colourful and beautiful as ever, and there are classic panto gags galore. It really isn’t one to miss, particularly as this could be our last at the beautiful Intimate Theatre.

Don’t miss out, buy your tickets today!

Snow White runs at The Intimate Theatre, 521 Green Lanes, Palmers Green, London, N13 4DH from Thurs 17th to Sat 19^th January 2018 at 7.30 p.m. & Matinee on Sat 2oth & Sunday 20^th January 2018 at 2.30 p.m. In addition, SMP will introduce an 11am Matinee on Saturday 20^th with a show specifically tailored for our younger audience.

Tickets are priced £14 Full/£11 Concessions and available by calling 07708 708 062 or emailing SMPTickets@hotmail.com to book. Online booking and payment is available via our website here: