Pantomimes and Mumming

Pantomimes

Pantomime (or 'Panto' for short!) is a traditional British Christmas play and a chance for people to go to the theatre. But it really came from very un-British traditions, nothing to do with Christmas whatever!

Millfield Theatre Pantomime - Mother Goose 2012
Millfield Theatre Pantomime - Mother Goose 2012 [CC-BY-SA-2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons

It is now primarily a children's entertainment show, in the theatre, based on traditional children's stories Fairy Stories such as Sleeping Beauty and Cinderella. But pantomime really began as an entertainment for adults. It can be traced back to the ancient Roman 'Saturnalia' midwinter feast, at which everything was supposed to be turned upside-down. Men dressed up as women and women as men. Just like the Pantomime Dames (Men comically dressed up as women) and principal boys (young women dressed up as boys, normally the leading role) of the modern day panto.

The Origins of Pantomime

Pantomime first came to Britain in the 18th century from the 'commedia dell'arte', the Italian tradition of improvised theatre. The stories of the commedia dell'arte had many 'stock' characters in them such as clowns and jesters and a 'baddie'. Traditional plots got mixed up with fairy stories, folk tales, or tales from the Arabian Nights stories, and gradually evolved into the dozen or so familiar stories of the panto repertoire that are still used today. The traditional figures from the commedia dell'arte gradually disappeared, and pantomimes became more as we know them today; they also became an expected part of our Christmas festivities, traditionally starting on Boxing Day (or often before Christmas now so more people can see them!).

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, pantomimes were changed quite a lot by the popularity of the music-hall entertainments. The stars of the day, comedians and music hall artistes, sometimes changed the plot an awful lot, just so they could do their own normal routines! Nowadays pop stars and television personalities continue this tradition, all turning up in panto, but the stories are not often changed too much.

Pantomime is now a popular family entertainment. The audience has to work almost as hard as the performers, whether it be joining in the songs, assisting in conjuring tricks, booing the villain and warning the hero with 'He's behind you!' or cheering them on!

Mumming

Mumming is an ancient pre-Christian/pagan custom that was an excuse for people to have a party at Christmas! It means 'making diversion in disguise'. The tradition was that men and women would swap clothes, put on masks and go visiting their neighbors, singing, dancing or putting on a play with a silly plot. The leader or narrator of the mummers was dressed as Father Christmas.

The custom of Mumming might go back to Roman times, when people used to dress up for parties at New Year. It is thought that, in the UK, it was first done on St. Thomas's day or the shortest day of the year.

Different types of entertainments were done in different parts of the UK, particularly in England. In parts of Durham, Yorkshire and Devon a special sword dance was performed. There were also different names for mumming around the UK too. In Scotland it was known as 'Gusards' or 'Guising'; in Somerset, 'Mumping'; in Warwickshire or 'Thomasing'; and 'Corning' in Kent.

In Medieval times, it had turned into an excuse for people to go begging round the houses and committing crimes. It became so bad that Henry VIII, made a law saying that anyone that caught mumming wearing a mask would be put in prison for three months!

One poem that people said when mumming was:

Christmas is coming, the beef is getting fat,
Please drop a penny in the old man's hat.

Over the years, this was changed into a very similar poem that is said by some carol singers today:

Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat,
Please put a penny in the old man's hat.

The early settlers from the UK took the custom of Mumming to Canada. It is known as Murmuring in Canada, but is banned in most places because people used it as an excuse for begging.

There's also a famous Mummer's Day parade New Year's Day in Philadelphia, in the USA, which lasts over six hours!

Mumming is still done in parts of the UK, USA and Canada.