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Dreaming of a feather-white Christmas . . .
From the archive, first published Thursday 24th Dec 1998.
Debra James, 35, is a co-director of Bruce James Productions, a theatre company which she runs with her husband, Bruce.
The couple live in West Road, Westcliff. The company produces touring plays, musicals, comedies and rep throughout the country.
Debra is co-producing Mother Goose, which opens at the Thameside Theatre, Grays tomorrow. She also wrote the script.
We caught up with her on the nerve-wracking first day of rehearsal one Sunday morning earlier this month ...
9am. I wake up, knowing this is the last day I'll be able to sleep in late. I'll have a big mug of tea and read all the showbiz news in the News of the World.
9.30am. Have a bath and make a mental checklist of everything I've to do. I'll put my face on. As well as being a producer I'm also an actor in a lot of our plays and so I have to wear a lot of stage make-up. I tend to leave the slap off when I'm not performing, but this is the first day of rehearsal so I make an effort.
11am. Dash over to my neighbour Lena for a cuppa and a chat. She's in her 40s and we're really close. She's really normal and down-to-earth with three kids and she's so different from most actors I know.
I've been on the stage since I was seven and performing is a way of life. Most people for example, wouldn't have a pantomime goose skin in their front room as I have; I'm trying to fluff it up at the moment.
11.30am. Go home and check my bag - scripts, pencils, glasses. I'm too busy to eat - nervous tension. However, this is our fifth year at the Thameside (last year we did Dick Whittington), so we must be doing something right!
12.15pm. Go to St Marks Church hall, Princes Street, Southend, where rehearsals are being held. I'll check the costumes with Barbara Howell, our wardrobe mistress from Benfleet. The company is also producing Snow White in Hertfordshire, and the Wizard of Oz in Brighton, so I'll bag those up, ready for sending. Along with our non-panto costumes, we must have around 1,000 outfits.
1.30pm. Put the kettle on.
1.45pm. The principals [leading actors] arrive. Most have worked for us before and many are local. Shara Thornton, the principal girl, is from Leigh, Anthony Whiteman, the goose, is from Grays, and Alan Terry, Billy Goose, is from Wakering.
2pm. All the cast arrive.
Picture: STEVE O'CONNELL
Converted for the new archive on 19 November 2001. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.
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