Portsmouth Guildhall and Curtain Call stage Rapunzel for pantomime season

The community theatre company will be performing at The Lens Studio in Portsmouth Guildhall from December 19-27 – their third year at the venue.

They promise an original pantomime full of music, dancing and hair-larity which is suitable for all the family. Rapunzel is a lonely princess trapped in a tower longing for a life of adventure in the outside world. Witness her courageous escape from mean Mother Gothel, who wants the powers of her magical hair.

Writer, director and Mother Gothel, Charlotte C-K said: “We're really excited to be doing Rapunzel – it's not one that's come to Portsmouth for a long time. And it's great because a lot of children really like Rapunzel and are familiar with the story. It's nice to work on something that's not been played as much.

"It's a really magical experience to give your children, and at the same time, you're going to enjoy it too.”

The cast promise a more up-close and personal experience than some other pantomimes. Leah Lloyd, who plays Rapunzel said: “Because it is such a small theatre there is no bad seat and we get to become friends throughout the show. It's all quite intimate and not as overwhelming as some of the big theatres might be for little ones.”

And The Fabulous Josh, who plays Pegasus added: “It's a great opportunity to be quite close to people when you're performing. In a usual pantomime you might be really far away from the audience, but you’re not at this one. It gives us that opportunity to talk to our audience and it will be a lot more interactive.”

The company pride themselves on their inclusive nature, and have again got several young performers with them in the cast.

“Our youngest is five,” said Charlotte. “We've got so much amazing talent here – we hold open auditions, trying to be as inclusive as we can. We've got some children who are neuro-diverse and we really try and support them. It's about allowing them to be as involved as they can and working with them and their parents.”

They will also have a BSL interpreter at two shows on December 23 – the earlier show will also be a relaxed performance.

"We're really excited about this, it’s the first time we’ve had a BSL interpreter join us. The relaxed performance will be an hour-long show, which is basically a scaled-back version of the show. The music's a bit quieter, we're not quite as intimidating as we can be, we do a meet and greet first and allow the audience to get to know us a little bit, introduce our characters and let them know what they can expect from us. It's really relaxed, if anyone needs to take five minutes out, people can come and go easily.”

Josh added: “One of the things that's so good about Curtain Call is that they're always looking at ways to engage and improve access and inclusion around the work that it does. It's not just about the shows getting bigger and better every year, it's also about how we can engage more with the audience as well.”

Tickets £15.75-£21.80. Go to portsmouthguildhall.org.uk.