ABSTRACT
Twentieth century pantomime, like all theatre, became subject to expanding syndicates, perhaps most notably Howard and Wyndham’s. They staged pantomimes in the Victorian period – their 1893 Dick Whittington at Newcastle starred Vesta Tilley – and continued across the country until after the Second World War. The Melvilles frequently made over twenty thousand pounds profit from their shows at the Lyceum – their last in 1938 made over sixty thousand pounds profit – and into the twenty-first century profits from the annual pantomime were virtually what kept many theatres afloat financially. Restless technological development meant fewer and fewer technicians to achieve the extraordinary results, until twenty-first century pantomime was likely to unroll with UV lighting, 3D film and laser beams. Twentieth century pantomime also required stars, following the music hall stars like Dan Leno who helped to shape twentieth century pantomime.
