Rumpelstiltskin

Not often performed, forsaken for the more popular in the panto canon. But what a great tale it is with all the magic, mystery and opportunity for comedy that a good pantomime could wish for.

As usual we have taken the tale and given the story our little twist and added a couple of extra characters for the audience to love and hate in equal measure.

Madam Miller and her lovely daughter own a windmill but they don’t make any money. The evil Sir Rupert, the kings tax collector comes looking for his taxes but of course they can’t pay. After much slapstick involving flour bags Millie (daughter) blurts out she can spin straw to gold. This then seals her fate. Sir Rupert imprisons her to do just that.

The king a handsome, kindly man, but unmarried, is also being bamboozled by Sir Rupert in the hope that the king may give up his kingdom and let him rule instead. Luckily he has his wily Queen Mother taking care of him.

All the while Millie is locked away with the ‘villain’ Rumpelstiltskin appearing three times to help her spin gold in exchange for tokens, the last one being her first born child which she of course agrees to.

Eventually Madam Miller hears about her daughter’s imprisonment through Sir Rupert’s youthful help, Sid Kick and goes to the palace with the help of her friend Teddy ‘two sails’ Baker and the rest of the village. The king is upset to hear about the unlawful imprisonment and whilst setting Millie free banishes Sir Rupert to the chorus for the rest of the show. The King then falls madly in love with Millie (and her gold).

They have their first son, Jaspar and Rumpelstiltskin turns up to claim his prize but of course Queen Millie is reluctant. Rumpelstiltskin agrees to a game. The queen has three chances to guess his name correctly to save her son. The first meeting doesn’t go well. The second one, the same, but this time Sir Rupert has followed her and after Queen Millie has left hears Rumpelstiltskin say his name and he tricks him into making a pact vowing not to tell his name if Rumpelstiltskin will make him king when he wins the game. Reluctantly, Rumpelstiltskin agrees. The Queen now asks her mother and the two bumbling guards Cringe and Cower to search the furthest woods to find out his name before the final meeting. They stumble across Sir Rupert and Rumpelstiltskin and overhear his name and at the last gasp arrive to say his name and save the day and the Queens son. Rumpelstiltskin gets banished to the deepest bowels of hell and Sir Rupert becomes Rupert and is jailed and everyone lives happily ever after.