VILLAGERS at Blewbury are hoping their first pantomime in more than 20 years will sprinkle a little magic on a fundraising campaign.

They have embarked on an effort to bring their 30-year-old village hall up to date with a major refurbishment of the building, which could cost more than £600,000.

As part of the fundraising, the village’s Blewbury Players amateur dramatic group, best known for its annual open-air summer productions, will be bringing to life their own version of the classic fairytale Jack and the Beanstalk in the village hall from Wednesday to Saturday, January 28 to 31.

The show, written by Blewbury Players’ actor Steve White, will be performed by a cast of all ages drawn from the locality and including regular performers from the summer events, members of the village choir and even some new faces.

Local drama teacher Joanne Laugharne is in charge of directing the action on a set designed by Elphin Lloyd-Jones, who wrote, directed, edited and designed the popular television animation series The Animals of Farthing Wood and Noah’s Island. He has also designed the costumes.

Director Joanne said: “Putting on a panto isn’t easy. It might not have the intellectual depth of Shakespeare, but it needs to be equally effective in terms of telling a story and entertaining an audience.

“In addition, it needs to contain all the ingredients of traditional panto that are expected: larger-than-life characters, audience interaction, songs, slapstick and as much fun as can be had in two hours.”

She added: “As the director of this year’s panto, my job has been made so much easier in terms of achieving these goals by having a great home-written script, a fantastic cast, wonderful music and a brilliantly designed set. And, as for the costumes . . !”

Principal boy Nikki Godding is simply having a ball in the lead role of Jack.

She said: “I have been acting from a young age and have conquered Shakespeare, and Chekhov and now it is time to tackle the highly-acclaimed panto world.

“This was the opportunity I have been waiting for, to tread the boards in the Blewbury village hall with a pantomime cow in tow. Dreams really do come true!”

Pantomime dame Chris Mousley-Jones is equally enjoying taking part in the seasonal show.

Recalling his role as Miranda in The Tempest, he said: “I thought my best frocks were behind me, but, oh, no, they’re not!

“It’s a great feel-good show, with lots of traditional corny gags, slapstick and local references, and will be a lot of fun for all the family.”

Trish Brooks, of Blewbury Players, said the “well-loved, but tired” village hall played an important role at the heart of village life.

The fundraising campaign is aiming to raise enough money to revamp the building to make it suitable for a wide range of users. A design has been drawn up to create more space, make the building more energy efficient and provide the hall with a better link to the neighbouring Blewbury Primary School.

As well as ticket sales from five performances going to boost the fundraising campaign, Elphin’s original concept artwork for the costumes will also be auctioned to raise funds. It can be seen at www.blewburyplayers.co.uk The Players are putting on four performances starting at 7.30pm and a matinee at 3pm on the Saturday. Tickets £12 for adults and £6 for children and students aged 18 and under are available from the Savages store, London Road, Blewbury, (cash or cheque only); from the drama group’s website www.blewburyplayers.co.uk and from the box office at Didcot’s Cornerstone Arts Centre on 01235 515144.

The cast also includes: Andrew Hewson, Louise Esplin, Janet Morgan, Rob Marsden, Chris Lakeland, Cara Hardman, Sandie Gilbert, Bob Brooks, Chris Willison, Alex Stiff, Zillah Laidlaw, Paul Finnon, Sarah Donne, Suzanne Smith, Marian Whiting, Cassie Watcyn-Jones, Kate Sothall, Elaine Margetts, Ali Ritchie, Ginny Ifould, Jane Gibson, Gay O’Nolan, Jenny McGreevy, Laura Pusey, Ben Silverthorne, George Brooks, Emma Egbers, Caitlin Smith, Rebecca Egbers, Dylan Laugharne, Alfie Morris and Megan George.