Upstagers pantomimes
Upstagers Logo
+

Welcome to Upstagers!

Jack & the Beanstalk – Auditions start this weekend!

Our 2027 pantomime adventure is about to begin!

Following eight consecutive Best Pantomime wins at the Wharfedale Festival of Theatre, we're getting ready to bring Jack & the Beanstalk to the King's Hall, Ilkley in January 2027.

Online audition registration has now closed – and we've had one of our biggest responses ever!

Ensemble auditions take place on Sunday 6 September, with Principal auditions on Tuesday 8 September. If you've registered, head over to our pantomime page for everything you need to know about auditions, rehearsals and the show.

If you missed registration but would still like to enquire about taking part, please email panto@upstagers.org.uk and we'll do our best to help.

Stacks Image 746

Eight in a row for Upstagers! 🏆

We were absolutely thrilled to see our 2026 pantomime Snow White named Best Pantomime at the Wharfedale Festival of Theatre Awards – making it an incredible eight consecutive Best Pantomime wins for Upstagers.

Snow White also received awards for Best Principal Girl (Amy-Pearl Watt), Best Dame (Mike Riley), Best Villain (Daisy Button), Best Choreographer (Laura Williams, joint winner), Best Director (John Clark, Andrew Hewitt & Joey Wilby) and Best Programme (Andrew Tarbett & Daisy Tarbett), alongside a fantastic collection of Wharfie Awards for the Mini Miners.

Pantomime is a huge team effort, and we're enormously proud of everyone who helped bring Snow White to the stage – our cast, crew, creatives and the many volunteers working behind the scenes.

A huge thank you, too, to the Wharfedale Festival of Theatre, its committee and assessors for everything they do to celebrate and encourage amateur theatre across our area – and congratulations to all the groups, performers and creatives recognised at this year's awards. We're incredibly lucky to be part of such a thriving local theatre community.
Stacks Image 780

Upstagers Academy

Upstagers has been providing a creative outlet for youngsters in the Ilkley area since 1987. We have a great team of teachers providing fulfilling, fun and beneficial classes to our next generation of Upstagers stars. Our students get the most out of their experience by building confidence and developing communication skills, whilst also having a lot of fun and meeting new friends. We're proud that many Upstagers alumni have created successful careers in theatre and other forms of performance.

Classes are available for six-year-olds up to young adults and take place at the Upstagers Barn opposite Ilkley railway station.

Click the button below to visit our Upstagers Academy mini-site.

Forthcoming shows

Stacks Image 105
Upstagers Theatre
2027 Pantomime

Jack & The Beanstalk

22-30 January 2027
King's Hall, Ilkley
10 performances

Stacks Image 107
Upstagers Academy
Christmas Showcase

Stay tuned....

Late 2026
Yeadon Town Hall
Single performance

Stacks Image 187
Upstagers Theatre
2027 Summer Show

Stay tuned....

July 2027
King's Hall, Ilkley
5 performances

Banner video credits (in order):
Robin Hood - Set by DSH Pantomime Set Hire, Will Scarlett costume by Molly Limpets Theatrical Emporium, Ensemble costumes by Upstagers
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang - Set by Scenic Projects, costumes by Charades Theatrical Costume Hire
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory - Set by Scenic Projects, Principal costumes by Molly Limpets Theatrical Emporium, Ensemble costumes by Upstagers
Cinderella - Set by Scenic Projects, Fairy Godmother & Unicorn costumes by Molly Limpets Theatrical Emporium, other costumes by Upstagers

We use a small number of cookies to help this site work properly and to support embedded content. We don’t use advertising or tracking cookies. You can find out more on our privacy & cookies page.