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  • Writer's picturekflynndavies
    • Nov 30, 2018
    • 13 min read

History of Costume: Pantomime Dames

It’s panto season! For many in the Western world the beginning of December marks the countdown to Christmas and in the UK theatre world this means the beginning of the annual tradition of pantomime. A kid’s show usually based on a fairytale, with adult jokes that is over the top, rude and fun for all the family. One of the staples of this tradition, and probably the most interesting character from a costume perspective, is the pantomime Dame. This is a man dressed as a woman who is often the mother of the protagonist. The Dame sometimes acts as a narrator but they often are the main character to break the fourth wall, interact with the audience and guide the audience through the story. In the blog post this week, I am going to explore where this tradition of the Dame came from, what the link between Dames and drag culture is, if there is one at all and what is the importance of the costume to the Dame. I am also going to explore the wider implications of gender expression with regards to the Dame and if the tradition may be outdated or will one day become so.


A painting of Commedia actors found at: http://commedia.klingvall.com/commedia-dellarte/

First, I will begin with exploring a little bit more where the tradition of pantomime itself comes from. The first pantomimes in the United Kingdom, in the sense that we understand them now, developed in the 18th Century, but they had actually developed from Italy with Commedia dell’Arte. (1) This was a form of masked, travelling street theatre that came about in the streets of 16th Century Italy, often performed by families to make money. It spread into France and other parts of Europe through the 16th and 17th Centuries and this is when it came to England. John Rich, coined Father of the Pantomime, developed the Commedia characters into more structured plays called Harlequinades, after the stock character of Harlequin and the story revolved around his pursuit of his lover, Columbine, whose father, Pantalone, would not allow them to marry. When looking at modern pantomime it is obvious to see the links between this storyline and the storylines of today, lovers who cannot come together because of a villain, this is a common thread among almost all pantomimes. There were cheeky servant characters who played tricks on Pantalone, again something that is commonly seen from the Dame or other side comic characters, or sometimes even the dancers in a pantomime, playing tricks on the villain. Finally, Pantalone would often have a Clown alongside him which is where we find the origins of the Dame. (2)


An image of Joesph Grimaldi, via University of York

While most modern pantomime tropes had already developed by the 18th Century, the Dame was a later addition that did not emerge until the 19th Century, originating from one of the most renowned clowns of the time, Joseph Grimaldi. (3) It is interesting to note that the Dame originated from the character of the clown rather than specifically from a place of female impersonation. Men had been playing women onstage for centuries “from the ancient Greeks, through to Shakespeare and into the 17th century, men or boys played all the female roles” (4), but by the time pantomime developed women had been allowed to perform onstage for over half a century (5) so the traditional female impersonators had mostly dwindled by the time pantomime began to be established. However, in 1820 Grimaldi “played the Baron’s wife in one of the earliest versions of Cinderella” (6), this is where we can see the dawn of the Dame but the tradition truly rocketed to popularity with Dan Leno, a music hall comedian, who began starring in pantomimes as the Dame character. (7) His performances are credited for developing the working class status and unglamorous character of the Dame. (8) From here, the Dame character became a staple of the pantomime.

Nellie Wallace as a Dame, via Victoria and Albert Museum

Ellacott and Robbins clarify that “often middle aged [male] actors played the roles of older or comedic ladies, since the new breed of actress did not possess the years, or the inclination to play such unglamorous roles” (9) which explains why the tradition remained that middle aged men would play the Dame, besides the fact that audiences found a man in the outrageous female costumes of the Dame incredibly comedic. Although, women as Dames are not completely unheard of, there were some women in the early days of pantomime who joined in the role, Nellie Wallace during the 19th Century with “her exaggerated dress sense, bordering on grotesque” put her among the names of great dames and she was one of the few women seen to be successful in the role. (10)



Dan Leno as Widow Twankey (1896), via Victoria and Albert Museum

Understanding the origins of the Dame helps to explain the origins of the costume. Grimaldi was a renowned clown, so when playing the Dame his costume was colourful and closer to that of a clown than of a woman. Dame costumes are always outrageous, over the top and colourful. This tradition of over the top costumes was continued by Dan Leno whose costumes were often a spectacle in themselves and a large part of the comedy in his act. The Victoria and Albert Museum talk about how “the costumes [Dame’s] wear play a large part in the jokes and are often visual puns” (11) for example in Peter Pan performed at Maidstone Studios in 2017, the Dame (Dave Short) wore a dress that included large hands across his fake breasts, as well as a pair of trousers that mimicked The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Dessert (designed by Tim Chappel and Lizzy Gardiner)with large round feet that hindered his movement across the stage, creating visual gags. (12) (13) Ellacott and Robbins also talk about how “often the Dame’s costume would be used to good comic effect by parodying the fashions of the time” (14), although this can occasionally be seen in modern pantomime, it seems that this was more a fashion during the early years of the Dame, as now most of the Dame costumes follow a similar silhouette that comes from the 19th Century, with a large crinoline, making the skirt a dome shape. This helps to mask the masculine body underneath and also allows for the dress to be cumbersome, an instant spectacle and different to the others onstage.



Widow Twankey wig designed by John Vicars for Alan Vicars (ca. 1980), via Victoria and Albert Museum

The costumes are clearly an essential aspect of the Dame, but, as listed in What’s On Stage’s video 5 steps to becoming a pantomime dame, the make-up and hair are also key aspects. (15) The hair follows the dress in being bright, colourful and over the top, often with a visual pun, for example, the wig could be topped with baskets of laundry as seen in the Hazlitt Theatre’s upcoming pantomime Aladdin, where the Dame (Tim Hudson) has two wigs that include piles of laundry baskets atop their head (16). Or indeed carrying on the theme of laundry, among other pantomime dame costumes exhibited at the Victoria and Albert museum there is a magnificent wig designed and made by John Vicars for another production of Aladdin worn by Alan Vicars as Widow Twankey circa 1980, which seems to have made the main bulk of the hair from a mop head and then constructed an entire clothes line with tiny clothes and a Daz box hanging from it which is magnificent.(17)



Berwick Kaler in Cinderella, photo: Anthony Robling

Alternatively, make-up seems to be a whole other discussion. Many Dames will go for a classic exaggerated dramatic eye and overdrawn lips with excessive blush, but in large block colours with little to no blending. This harkens back to Grimaldi’s clown make-up with a hint of female impersonation, but almost all the Dames seem to make one thing clear that it is imperative that the audience know the Dame is a man the entire time so most say that it is important that the make-up not be realistic. However, there are of course exceptions, such as Ceri Dupree, who explains in Panto Day’s video on Dames who describes himself as more “glamorous” (18) and suggests that it is not always clear that he is a man.(19) Still, the other Dames interviewed in the video are seen saying that they “want [their Dame] to look clown-y rather than lady” (20), while others question even the relevance of the make-up, one even saying “I think the costumes are more important than the make up for a Dame” (21). This is certainly the case with regular Dame at the York Theatre Royal, Berwick Kaler, who simply brushes a small amount of rogue on his cheeks and that is all22, similarly, Les Dawson who, when playing Dame, only put a small red dot of make-up on his nose to indicate his status as clown (23). So it seems that there is not a unanimous decision on make-up for a Dame, like with costume, yet, it is clear how important the costume is and it seems you cannot have the Dame without the costume.


Lily Savage in pantomime, via The Express

Now, as I mentioned earlier, it is key to note how the Dame originated from the clown rather than from female impersonation. This is where the world of drag and the world of the Dame differ. Drag has been in existence “probably as long as human beings have been wearing clothes” (24), but drag culture as we know it today branched out from theatre, in a similar way to the Dame. It came from the female impersonations seen on stage from centuries but was forced underground into secret gay bars after women were allowed onstage and the act of cross-dressing was more aggressively policed, although arrests for cross-dressing dated back to the 14th Century.

Divine in John Water's Pink Flamingos

Despite drag and Dames splitting in this way it does not mean that they have been completely separate. Of course drag queens have been known to play Dame on many occasions, for example, Paul O’Grady as Lily Savage has appeared in many pantomimes and drag make-up often has a strong similarity to that of a Dame, you only have to look at an image of legendary drag queen, Divine to see the similarity between her exaggerated look and the look of a Dame. Although, more modern trends in drag seem to be moving away from the exaggerated, clown look into more realistic looks, although some queens such as Trixie Mattel seem to be developing a new way to showcase an exaggerated, clown look that mocks current make-up trends without sticking too aggressively to the tradition ‘drag face’ that Queens have sported for years.

Trixie Mattel, via genius

Further from drag queens starring as Dames, it seems with the rise in popularity of drag, coming from the boom of RuPaul’s Drag Race that perhaps the role of the Dame and the glamour of drag may begin to blur and become less separate. (25)


On the topic of the role of the Dame evolving in the future I’d like to briefly look at the discussion of gender and the Dame. Now, as mentioned above, many Dames are very adamant on ensuring that it is clear that they are a man and nearly every description of what the Dame is can be neatly summarised by Michael Hogan who describes the role as a “middle-aged man cross-dressing to play old battleaxes in a family-friendly festive variety show”. (26) As society progresses into a space where fashion is becoming more androgynous and it is becoming more acceptable for people of any gender to wear items from any section of a clothing shop, how is the mere sight of someone who identifies and presents as a man, in clothes traditionally worn by women still viewed as the peak of hilarity and a key aspect to the Dame character? In the variety of sources I have read and watched while researching I have seen a number of people claiming that it is most important that the Dame be played by a man and that it could never be played by a woman (of course they do not even begin to explore the realms of trans, non-binary and GNC people) but the only reasoning I seem to have come across is that it is tradition. Now, although I do not necessarily agree with this as sound reasoning I could accept this reasoning slightly more if other aspects of pantomime had not changed and developed over the years, indeed, pantomime itself was an adaptation of a different form of theatre altogether. The most notable and relevant change, however, is that of the Principal Boy.


Dawn French as the Evil Queen, via Stagedoor

When pantomimes were first developing the principal male character, often a young boy was given to a woman in what was known as a ‘breeches part’. (27) This was essentially a way to entice men to the theatre to get a glimpse of a woman’s ankle and calf which would ordinarily be hidden from view. Yet, this cross-dressing tradition seems to have dwindled drastically in favour of giving these roles to dashing men as it is suggested that audiences were uncomfortable with the onstage romance that had essentially become between two women. Despite this change, there seems no outcry at the loss of the traditional Principal Boy, but there are mountains of articles suggesting that the switch to a female Dame would be the death of the pantomime. In my mind, it seems to simply stem from the false, outdated, sexist rhetoric that women simply are not funny. In his article for The Express, Robert Gore-Langton suggests that while women have proven they can play dramatic roles such as Glenda Jackson in King Lear, they could not possibly be a Dame. (28) But I feel as if Robert has not quite understood that King Lear is not exactly where I would be looking for actors to be in an upcoming pantomime, surely you would look at comedy greats such as Dawn French, who, in my opinion, would make a fantastic Dame. She has the warmth and motherly persona required of the Dame, while having the ability to be sarcastic, witty and catty. The only thing missing is the deep register and stubble but are those really necessary aspects for a funny Dame? In fact, she is no doubt proving her worthiness at the London Palladium's Snow White this year as the Evil Queen. I think Senelick summarises it perfectly saying, “‘a man in female garb is apt to appear awkward and ungainly’ and, in a word, ‘unsexed’…men might play post-menopausal matrons…for [that] offer[s] little threat to standard gender identities”. (29) A man cross-dressing in any other part of the pantomime could allow for the character to be viewed as sexual, and it seems that there is a fear that if a woman took on the role the same thing could happen. In a world still dominated by men the fact that a woman could have the confidence to take on the role of the Dame terrifies a lot of people and I think it could be time for a change. I look forward to a time where the Dame can be played by someone of any gender and the comedy comes from their costume and what they say, not from us laughing that a man is wearing a dress.


Overall, it is clear to see how important the costume is to the character of the Dame, in fact, George Lacy (a seasoned Dame) says himself “you don’t have to think about being a dame, you just put [the costume and make-up] on an you are” (30) which is echoed by another Dame in Panto Day’s video saying “I pretty much play myself and let the costumes and the make-up do a lot of the work” (31), but perhaps it’s time to begin looking at the traditions of pantomime and while appreciating and understanding their history, looking to see if some of the roots of these stories and how we portray them now may not work for modern audiences. I hope that pantomime will develop with changing audiences as they have done in the past and that they do not stiffly cling on to outdated traditions of racist (Aladdin and Peter Pan probably being the biggest culprits with their representations of and jokes about Chinese people and China and Native Americans respectively) and sexist tropes just because it is what has been done in the past.


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