Episode 139 - A Year In The Life Of A Producer - Part Three with Sarah Boden

Episode 139 – A Year in the Life of a Producer: July, August & SeptemberIn Episode 139 of the Just Imagine podcast, Martin Ballard is joined once again by Imagine Theatre Joint CEO Sarah Boden for the third instalment of our four-part series looking at a year in the life of a pantomime producer.As the summer draws to a close, the countdown to pantomime is gathering pace. Children's auditions are underway across the country, with hundreds of young performers being selected for this year's junior ensembles – and thousands of documents being processed to make sure they're ready to take to the stage.Martin and Sarah explore the many moving parts happening behind the scenes during July, August and September, including casting, children's licensing, costume fittings, music and script choices, backstage recruitment, technical planning and the preparation of sets, costumes, wigs and props at Imagine's production facilities.They also discuss why every pantomime needs to be tailored to its individual venue and audience, from knowing when to keep much-loved traditions such as The Twelve Days of Christmas to adapting backstage teams and technical requirements to suit very different theatres across the UK.There's also a fascinating look at F2 budgeting – the stage of the production year when costs for cast, crew, lighting, sound, transport, costumes and other elements are being locked in – as well as the huge amount of planning required to organise payroll for hundreds of people working across the pantomime season.And, as always with pantomime, there's room for a few last-minute surprises… including the memorable story of the producer who suddenly realised they had forgotten to order a giant!This episode offers another behind-the-scenes look at just how much work goes into getting 21 pantomimes ready to open, long before the audiences arrive.Just Imagine is the podcast series from Imagine Theatre, hosted by Martin Ballard. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts and catch up with the previous episodes in the A Year in the Life of a Producer series.