SPOTLIGHT Theatre was delighted to welcome guests back to their first show since the Covid pandemic.

Their Christmas pantomime, a retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk, was held each day between Wednesday, December 14 and Sunday, December 18.

Rhona Stark, who played the fairy during the performance, said it was a joy to host shows in front of a live audience again.

She said: “It was our first show back after Covid and it was a great success.

“We have had brilliant comments on our Facebook page from people telling us it’s great to be back hosting live shows.

“A lot of people commended us for including children in our shows and they told us it was a great way to kick off Christmas.

“We were mindful of how difficult it is for everyone this time of year so we gave out a lot of tickets to nearby charities to try and make it accessible for most people.

"The cost of living crisis has hit us all so we tried to make sure it was affordable for people.

“We’ve got shows planned for about May time and then we’ll be planning our next pantomime.”

Rhona was joined by Chris Beetham, a Tullibody strongman who played the giant in the show and has recently qualified for UK’s strongest man.

The community theatre group was helped by Kirsty Docherty, who worked as a voice coach for the fledgling actors.

The money raised from the Jack and the Beanstalk show will be reinvested in the group, allowing them to plan more performances in the new year.