Banter With Buttons...

Michael Mullin has been with The Wight Strollers for over four years now, and in that time he's been lucky enough to take on a range of roles, from Judah in Joseph to Jack in last year's Jack and the Beanstalk. 

This year, Michael is playing Buttons, the head servant at Hardup Hall - well, actually, he's the only servant at Hardup Hall! Best friend to Cinderella, confidante to the Baron and loved by all the villagers, Buttons is a long-standing favourite with pantomime audiences all over the country, and we have a feeling Michael's Buttons will be up there with the best of them!

So what is it that makes Buttons so loveable?
"What makes him so lovable? He's the real hero of the story! He's lovely, he's adorable, he's funny...and he should get the girl! It's not fair!"

O...kay...I think I've touched a nerve there! We'll move on! What are your two favourite moments of the show so far? 
"I love the little scene between me and Cinderella where we're sitting on a table and Buttons is convinced she loves him. As for my favourite scene that I'm not in, it would probably have to be the scene where she turns into a princess. That's a really key moment, too."

You've been with the company now since September 2013...
"Has it been that long?"

It has been that long! What's been your most memorable moment with The Wight Strollers so far?
"My most memorable moment would probably be the very first time I was on stage with the company as Man Friday, in my little loin cloth, facing off with Sarah Scotcher for the first time!"

That's a baptism of fire!
"It was, absolutely. I've never forgotten it - and I probably never will!"

Before Robinson Crusoe, you were a relative newcomer to pantomime but you'd performed in many other genres, and have done since, too. What makes pantomime different?
"It's totally insane! Everything about it is just geared towards having fun - the people on stage are having fun, the audience is having fun, and it's just unique in that it's totally focused on achieving that. There's no other aim except for everyone to enjoy themselves."

Cinderella is certainly going to be a lot of fun - and it's a firm favourite in the panto world, as a story. But what's your personal favourite of all the pantomimes?
"Oh, it has to be Mother Goose. I've never actually seen it, but I just think a pantomime based around a goose sounds great!"

That's got to be the most unusual answer I've ever had to that one! Turning back to Cinderella, why should people come and see the show?
"It's what I said before, about pantos just being unadulterated fun. That's just the feeling in all of The Wight Strollers' shows, they turn that idea up to eleven every single time and it's just rad. You'll have a good time whether you pay attention to what's going on in the story or not - the atmosphere is just brilliant."

-

Catch Michael as Buttons in Cinderella, this February Half Term at Medina Theatre. Tickets are still available and can be purchased from the Medina Theatre website, by phoning 01983 823884 or by visiting the Box Office in person.

'Aladdin' Delves into Cave of Wonders for Island Charities

We are thrilled to announce that we have given away £6,200 to local charities, following our successful run of Aladdin during the February half term.

The production was The Wight Strollers' 35th annual pantomime and takes their grand charity total over the £130,000 mark, with every penny staying on the Island.

We handed over our charity donations at our AGM on Thursday, April 23, to representatives from both causes.

Louise Walker, Commercial and Community Training Manager for the Isle of Wight Ambulance Service, accepted a cheque for £5,000 to purchase three Public Access Defibrillators, in coded boxes to make them accessible 24/7, for the Island.

She said: "What a privilege to meet such an amazing group of people...words are not enough to express my sincere thanks on behalf of the Isle of Wight Ambulance Community Training Department.

"Without a defibrillator, your out-of-hospital cardiac arrest survival chances are 5-6%. With one, that can go up to 74%. I can't thank you enough - this is an incredible donation to the Island community."


Joan Rigby a former member of The Wight Strollers, then collected a £1,200 cheque for the IW Prostate Cancer & Urology Support Group.

"Who'd have thought, when a small group of us got together all those years ago and performed as The Wight Strollers, that we'd come so far?

"A big thank you to The Wight Strollers for this generous donation," she said. "As usual, the Strollers pulled out all the stops to provide a top class production which the IW should be proud of."

After we'd presented the cheques, we arrived at the matter of our 2016 pantomime, which will be - drumroll, please! - Mother Goose, to be performed in February 2016 at Medina Theatre. It will, once again, be directed by Sarah Scotcher, who fought off tough competition from a guy called Spielberg for the privilege!

Three committee members were also due to stand down, but all three - Mike Squibb, David Kast and myself - were re-elected to serve another term.

One thing that was clear, looking out at the sea of faces in attendance, is how far The Wight Strollers have come over the years, and how incredibly lucky we are to have such a dedicated membership and loyal audience following.

"Over recent years, the standard of our productions has risen and I didn't think we could get much better," said Mike Sutcliffe, our Chairman. "But with Aladdin we did. Everything was outstanding...

"I am incredibly proud to be part of a small family company like ours, capable of staging something so spectacular, taking our reputation to an even higher level."

Well said, Mr Chairman - very well said indeed!