It’s All Over Now

9 o’clock in the evening and I’m sat watching Vera with a mug of tea. Unlike the last four evenings, when I would have been cavorting about on stage, wearing a false hump and an outrageous wig at this time.
Panto is well and truly over for another year, but we definitely went out on a high. Stupendous acrobatics from the King, some cracking ad-libs from our stand in Dame and flowers thrown onto the stage as we took our bows, courtesy of a group in the audience who were colleagues of three of the cast, including the Principal Boy. Definitely a first for me, in thirty odd years of doing this, being showered by flowers!
Our Baddie’s voice even managed to last to the end, though he was clearly not well - what a trouper!
We had a great little party afterwards where there was much hilarity and swapping of anecdotes. I think we all had a sense that we’d achieved something special, especially over the last few days, when the lurgy was striking people down left, right and centre.
And I know I was lucky to make it to the end myself. I have mostly spent today in exhausted slumber, apart from a very short walk round town and a coffee and cake in Nero. Feeling a bit better now, and extremely grateful I’m sitting in a chair at home and not one in the Green Room at The Bryce. I’ve even had time to read the Programme and never realised the tale of Puss in Boots was such an old story - the earliest version found being almost four hundred years old.
And, whilst I’m glad to be relaxing now, I’m already missing the laughter and applause…