It’s a sunny morning in York, and we head to the Grand Opera House to catch up with actors, Berwick Kaler and David Leonard about their upcoming 2023 pantomime, Robinson Crusoe and the Pirates of the River Ouse.
E: First of all, hello to you both!
B: Hello!
E: Thank you so much for taking some time to speak to us on behalf of Your Local Link, we’re very, very excited about this panto production of 2023, Robinson Crusoe and the Pirates of the River Ouse. How’s the progress of the script coming along and what stage of production are we currently at?
B: Absolutely nothing…
D: What script?
B: We’ve turned up here for Your Local Link, and we’re in costume it’s the first time we’ve seen them. All I can reveal is, this is the true story of Robinson Crusoe. And, Robinson Crusoe never managed to sail out of the Ouse. Did you know, is it the author of it, that was born in York?
D: Yeah…
B: So we have to make something of it! I mean It’s a very difficult show for other people to do in as much as the stage crew and everything. I mean it’s actors like David Leonard, and they say: “Why do you why stick with David Leonard, Suzy Cooper, etc?” Well, because they’re not fantastic actors or anything…
D: *Chuckles*
E: Someone’s got to hire them…
D: *Chuckles*
Oh, thank you very much!
E: Just messing.
B: I say, because they never get thrown with my ad-libs and the show does rely on ad-libs. If we make an ad-lib and think it’s funny, it’ll stay in, but we don’t then treat it as an ad-lib. If I think people are getting distracted in the production, especially the younger members of the cast, I’ll just throw something out there that makes them better…
*Gestures by pulling a funny face*
Like that. You know, keep them on their toes. Keep them alert.
E: I think that’s the beauty of panto though, isn’t it? It’s like it’s always fresh every night. Although the plot sort of stays the same, the characters are the same but you know the jokes will always be different.
B: Well…why we’re successful, and why we don’t go down that path is because we don’t have a plot. We’ve never had a plot.
E: You lost the plot?
B: Something like that. My main thing is fun, fun fun. And, I mean the cast, crew, management, and everybody must be on that level. The stage crew knows, they also have to listen to the show, because it isn’t the same, and it never will be the same in every performance.
E: And that’s the spirit of panto, ey?
B: It is certainly with ours. It’s fun.
E: Can you describe Robinson Crusoe And the Pirates of the River Ouse in three words for us?
D: Fun, fun, fun. We’ve got no script, we really don’t know!
E: Berwick, you’re in semi-retirement now. What’s kept you on stage? What’s your favourite thing about performing panto in particular?
B: Well, it’s our relationship with this audience. It’s quite unique, the way our panto was born. I mean, I was a little rebel 45 years ago, and I wouldn’t accept the fact that we’re going to do the same kind of pantomime as everybody else. Some Dames splatter their faces with absolutely repulsive makeup, making them look like clowns. I’ve never worn makeup for the Dame in my life, and I never will. Either you have the face for it, or you don’t. And I have to have a very pretty face.
D: Well, you still are very pretty.
B: Yeah, yeah thank you David, and no, you’re not doing next year…
D: *Chuckles*
E: Well, on that note…David, you’ve been described as “Yorkshire’s evergreen pantomime villain”, what makes a good pantomime villain in your eyes?
D: Well, I’ve been very lucky. Berwick writes the script and I think he insists that a villain doesn’t just come onto the stage and growl at the audience and say: “Boo!”, and then walk off in a green light. It’s a bit boring. Berwick’s villains are, you know, vain, glorious, and I have to think funny at the same time, with delusions of grandeur, all of that. In any other pantomime, it would have been a straightforward villain. But he writes fantastic scripts for me. He writes it for Martin. He writes it for Suzy. And the audience.
B: He’s a terrific actor. And we’re really lucky. The audience knows it. Also, there are people in the audience who find him sexy, or they did…
D: With my advanced age. But there is a distance between us and a lot of nice, flattering light on stage.
B: But when I come on, they have to put a rail up, to stop the audience from mounting up and grabbing me.
D: But seriously, when Berwick writes, he writes for us. Nobody knows what chemistry is, I mean you can’t put it into words really, It’s just you either have chemistry with each other or you don’t, and I don’t think Berwick would have actually asked us to return if he didn’t feel we had that rapport on stage. We all kind of know what each other is thinking. We feed each other and that is something that a lot of pantomimes do not do.
E: And finally, before you go on your way. One of the most iconic parts of the pantomime is of course the appearance of a Wagon Wheel or two. After a few good years of practice now, we really want to know, which cast member do you think would win in a Wagon Wheel throwing competition.
D: Well obviously, Berwick is the master of doing it. I have seen him throw a Wagon Wheel up to the gallery and it almost drops on the person’s lap.
E: Well, apparently one of my colleagues accidentally got hit in the head with one, one year…
B: Did they sue?
E: No, he just never returned to the theatre…
B: *Chuckles*
Oh, that bad?
E: Yeah, scarred for life. Worth it though, it’s a great snack.
*Berwick and David chuckle.*
E: Well, thank you very much for your time and we can’t wait to see you in the panto this festive season. Enjoy your cruise!
Tickets for Robinson Crusoe and the Pirates of the River Ouse are now on sale, for performances between Saturday 9th December 2023 – Saturday 6th January 2024. For more information, please visit https://www.atgtickets.com/venues/grand-opera-house-york/.
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