Hop on board for the annual flight of fantasy that is pantomime with Huddersfield Light Opera Company.

Expect all the ingredients of a five star show from a company that has perfected the recipe for traditional panto.

Huddersfield Light Opera Company celebrated its centenary in 2011 and has a well earned reputation for staging quality musicals.

But since 1977, it has also gained a loyal following for another very different sort of show. Pantomime.

Every year since then it has packed venues, currently the Lawrence Batley Theatre, with the sort of seasonal shows guaranteed to put the fun into family outings.

These are the singers, dancers and performers who know just how Huddersfield audiences like their pantomimes.

So that means plenty of traditions, music, dancing, lots of laughter and yes, outrageous costumes – particularly when there’s a panto dame in town!

This year, the team is all set to whisk audiences off to a land of genies, magic lamps and who knows, perhaps a magic carpet?

Aladdin opens at the LBT on Saturday, January 11 with performances running until January 18.

Chris Brearley has been producing the Light’s pantomimes for the last 23 years and has been assisted by Paul Bennett for the last 15 years. Both also appear on stage.

“Our choreographer, Pam Strickland has provided dancers from her dancing school and produced all the choreography for all the 36 productions,” said Chris.

“We pride ourselves on producing a traditional pantomime – with a male pantomime dame and female principal boy – which is suitable for all ages of the family, having refined our recipe over the last 36 productions.

 “The company sees Aladdin as one of the top four popular pantomimes and we always try to keep up to date with special effects and popular topics,” he said.

Chris and Paul have co-written the show and are backed by a strong technical team including Pam as choreographer with her daughter, Zoe Cook as her assistant and Emma Binns as musical director.

Panto fans will be delighted to see that the Light is fielding some of its popular and most experienced panto performers including Neil Broadbent as Wishee Washee, Chris Brearley as the dame, Widow Twankey, Paul Bennett as The Emperor and Dom Moccia as the villainous Abanazer.  Zoe Clarkson returns for her second year as Principal Boy playing the title role of Aladdin.

There are also some new faces being welcomed into the line-up of principals.

Chloe Byrnes has appeared in nine previous shows as a member of the dance team and now gets to step out as the Slave of the Ring.

Hayley Diamond, also a previous dance team member, plays Princess So-Shi while Nick Turner gets the beautifully named role, Who Flung Dung. Nick is new to the Light but has appeared with other amateur groups.

 Peter Turner joined the company to play in Hot Mikado and here becomes Genie of the Lamp.

The face of Louisa LeFevre will be  familiar to supporters of the Light’s musicals, and she joins the Aladdin cast as Wong Long Pong.

Look out too for a special addition to the cast, Pekoe the Panda.

Performance dates and times from the box office on 01484 430528.