Why perform Ben Crocker's Treasure Island pantomime script...?
- ben60467
- Apr 30
- 2 min read
Treasure Island is my most popular pantomime script, so I guess it must get a lot of things right!
A pirate panto is great fun to stage – lots of colourful, outlandish costumes, vibrant characters, exotic settings and a great deal for the Chorus to get their teeth into.
But when I sat down to write my pantomime script version of Treasure Island, I was very aware that the Robert Louis Stevenson original – brilliant adventure story though it is - was not exactly awash with female characters.
Pondering on this led me to come up with the idea of involving the Women’s Institute.
Quite simply, the involvement of the Smuggler’s Cove Women’s Institute is the comic gift which keeps on giving, particularly when all its members become members of Long John Silver’s pirate crew.
The Women’s Institute yields a whole gallery of characters, Mrs Henderson, the doughty Chair and Mrs Parker the slightly rebellious Vice Chair. The enthusiastic cake bakers, Mrs Battersby, Mrs Snook, Mrs Carter-Brown, Mrs Tubb and Mrs Dodd – and of course, the independently minded Miss Normington, whose inventive cake icing saves the day. Needless to say, the clash of cultures aboard the good ship Hispaniola is immense…
In fact, Treasure Island is one of my largest cast pantomime scripts – and along with all the WI members, there really are lots of fabulous roles for your cast to enjoy performing.
Pirates - like Gizzard Slitter, Blood Boiler and The Fridge… The less fearsome Seaweed Sam and Seaweed Willy - and of course, Long John Silver and his ageing, 70-year-old parrot, Polly - who just wants to sit on his shoulder.
Romance blossoms (instantly) between Jim Hawkins and the Squire’s daughter, Jenny Trelawney, a particularly feisty principal girl, who yearns for adventure rather more than Jim.
Meanwhile, the Squire - a man with a weakness for cake - is in thrall to Jim’s mum’s spotted dick (and custard.)
The Dame is Jim’s mum, Mrs Hawkins. It’s her who gets hold of the Treasure map from the expired Billy Bones and she is central to the story right from the get-go. It’s a great Dame role to pay.
Throw in the Black Spot, a water fight and Ben Gunn as a castaway Ship’s Photographer, offering a calendar shoot for the ladies of the WI - and you have a very, very funny pantomime script which has gone down brilliantly with audiences in over 250 productions all over the world. But don’t just take my word for it, have a read for yourself!