The Panto Project
The Panto Project is a 5 Year Community Commitment for Festive Family Fun created in partnership with the Abrons Arts Center and ONEOFUS. It is our goal to import the magic and fun of the British Panto, giving American audiences a chance to experience our radical, joyful, uproarious, interactive family holiday spectacle, which promotes equality in all forms. thepantoproject.com
What is Panto?
Pantos are a 300 year old tradition in England and often the largest production of many major UK theaters generally running from November through January, for the holiday season. It is our goal to recreate (not reinvent) the magic and fun of the Panto, whilst tailoring it for an American audience. As it is a well loved, tried and tested form, ONEOFUS will both observe and honor many of the traditions that have brought joy to families during the holidays, and subvert, update, and improve some of less inclusive aspects.
New York City needs family theater that is inherently irreverent, lightly political, with the strong theme that - eventually - good triumphs over evil. We believe that every child, teen, and grown up deserves to feel that they can be an agent of change in their own lives, and in society at large. By providing a space in which audiences can boo and hiss the villains while cheering and supporting the heroes, we show the power of each of us, and the ultimate power we have when coming together as a community.
Photo laurel Leber
Photo by Norman Blake
In 2017, ONEOFUS and Abrons Arts Center presented “Jack & The Beanstalk,” a Lower East Side specific version of a classic Panto tale. While this production was originally intended to be a one-off, JACK IS BACK! That is why we’re committed to 5 years of Pantos at Abrons, beginning with the 2018 re-mount of our uproarious “Jack & The Beanstalk,” to be followed by Dick Rivington & His Cat - a New York-i-fication of the traditional Panto Dick Whittington & His Cat. Our plans for the immediate future and beyond are as of now unknown - but there will be laughs, songs, and tons of pies to the face. SO LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU!
Curtain Call at Jack & the Beanstalk 2017
Making the DIck Rivington Backdrop August 2020 with Steven Hammell, David Garza, Julie A Muz & Juanita Cardenas
