Holly Mayhew from Neyland will flaunt her golden locks at this year’s festive treat as she plays Rapunzel in Torch Theatre’s hair-larious pantomime. Her acting career started right here at the Torch and she can’t wait to hear audience members cheering her on ...

Hello everyone! What an absolute pleasure it is to be back here at the Torch Theatre for Rapunzel this December.

The Torch Theatre is really where it all started for me, from being part of their Youth Theatre throughout my teenage years, led then by the fantastic Chloe and Jonny, and coming to see numerous shows and pantomimes here throughout all my childhood until I moved away to study at Drama Studio London.

Without the Torch and the theatre magic it inspired in me from an early age I don’t think acting would have been ‘what I wanted to do when I grow up’. In Pembrokeshire we are so incredibly lucky to have the 

Torch Theatre - it’s full of truly brilliant spaces with something always going on and to get involved with or to go and see. 

Chelsey as Artistic Director and all the team here have created a welcoming and accessible environment for all different types of creatives. 

Acting for me has always been about playing, it provided me with a creative outlet and way to express myself when I couldn’t necessarily find another way to do so, it’s always allowed me to be the most authentic version of myself which I know sounds ironic in a job where you usually pretend to be someone else. It’s a career in which you can literally never stop learning, no day, rehearsal or show is the same keeping you always on your toes and present in that time and place with the people around you, and what an incredible room of actors and creatives, I’ve been lucky to share this process with and learn from. This being my second acting job since graduating creates a full circle to kick start my career.

I feel incredibly lucky to be back at the Torch Theatre for this Panto season playing the role of Rapunzel. I hope to see many of your familiar faces in the audience booing the baddies and most importantly cheering and singing along.