A Panto First for the Grand Opera House, Oh Yes It Is!
The Adventures of Pinocchio makes its Grand Opera House premiere this Christmas with a talented cast and award-winning creative team bringing the timeless and magical tale to life for the first time on the Theatre’s iconic stage.
Guaranteed to be a festive treat for all ages, Northern Ireland’s biggest pantomime has already sold a record number of 45,000 tickets.
Audiences can expect a magical and spectacular retelling of the story of the puppet Pinocchio and his quest to become a ‘real boy’. The show features the Theatre’s pantomime hallmark of laugh-out-loud comedy, stunning costumes, dazzling staging and effects, and thrilling song-and-dance routines.
Belfast’s much-loved pantomime Dame, May McFettridge, who has appeared on the Theatre’s stage over 3,000 times, leads the cast as Mrs Geppetto. Joining May in her record-breaking 35th Grand Opera House pantomime season are Belfast panto favourites Paddy Jenkins, as Jiminy Cricket, and comedian Adam C Booth in the title role of Pinocchio.
Following her stand-out and highly acclaimed performances as The Wicked Queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and Captain Hook in last year’s production of The Adventures of Peter Pan, Jolene O’Hara plays the villain Stromboli. Making her Grand Opera House panto debut is Philippa O’Hara, Jolene’s sister, who plays The Fox. Together, the two have performed all over the world, both as individual artists as well as their hugely successful duo, The O’Hara Sisters.
Completing the line-up are Jayme-Lee Zanoncelli, and Maeve Byrne. Jayme-Lee, as The Blue Fairy, has appeared in numerous productions including TINA: The Tina Turner Musical, Never Forget - The Musical, and next month appears on the Grand Opera House stage as Columbia in The Rocky Horror Show. Maeve’s credits include the UK tour of Grease, Kiss Me Kate (Lyric Theatre, Belfast), and A Christmas Carol (The MAC, Belfast). Maeve, originally from Bangor, plays the role of The Cat.
Ian Wilson, Chief Executive of the Grand Opera House said: “Generations of families have made the Theatre’s panto their go-to Festive treat, and for many people the Grand Opera House’s Christmas show is their introduction to the spectacle of live theatre.
“This is the first time The Adventures of Pinocchio has been staged as the Theatre’s pantomime since it opened on 23 December 1895, and I am thrilled that Michael Harrison, one of the West End’s most prolific and celebrated producers, has created another unmissable show, for which a record number of tickets have already been sold. With over 76,000 people expected during the six-week run, now is the time to book your tickets for Northern Ireland’s biggest panto yet!”
The Adventures of Pinocchio is created by the team behind the Theatre’s recent productions of The Pantomime Adventures of Peter Pan, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella, and Goldilocks and the Three Bears. The show is staged by Olivier award-winning producer Michael Harrison on behalf of Crossroads Pantomimes, the biggest pantomime producer in the world.
As well as producing and directing the world-famous London Palladium pantomimes, Michael’s production of Starlight Express is currently taking the West End by storm, and his recent touring productions of The Drifters Girl, War Horse, The Wizard of Oz, and Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, have enjoyed sell-out runs at the Grand Opera House. His production of Miss Saigon, in association with Cameron Mackintosh, is set to be one of the Grand Opera House’s theatrical highlights when it runs at the Theatre next March.
Michael Harrison said: “I’m delighted to announce such a talented cast for our Belfast pantomime, once again led by the inimitable May McFetridge. Our long association with the Grand Opera House is something we treasure at Crossroads Pantomimes and we are thrilled to be bringing a new title, The Adventures of Pinocchio, to the theatre this Christmas.”
The Adventures of Pinocchio is directed and choreographed by Jonny Bowles, lighting design is by Graham J McLusky, set design is by Andrew Exeter, and Philip Shute is the show’s musical director.
Northern Ireland’s biggest pantomime is, once again, sponsored by Dale Farm, which shares the joy of pantomime in the ninth consecutive year of its partnership with the Grand Opera House. The Adventures of Pinocchio runs from Saturday 29 November 2025 to Sunday 11 January 2026, book tickets online now or call the Box Office team on 028 9024 1919..