Sleeping Beauty at Mansfield Palace Theatre is a record-breaker

Ninety-six percent of tickets were sold for the production’s five-week run, two percent up on its predecessor Cinderella.

A record-breaking 31,910 people, including a coach party from Norwich, had watched Sleeping Beauty by the time it ended at the beginning of January.

Andrew Tucker, cultural services manager, said: “We are over the moon. It gives a sense of achievement when you and the team have worked hard towards something like this.”

He attributed the success of Sleeping Beauty to several factors. “We are competitive on our prices and the tickets are very affordable.

“Mansfield loves its TV stars and they love Corrie, so Vicky Entwhistle who had been in Corrie for number of years was a big draw. Amy Thompson, who presents Milkshake! was a lovely Sleeping Beauty.

“Flying sequences and a fire-breathing dragon made Sleeping Beauty a spectacular work.

“It has been such a phenomenal success that the question is, how can we do it better?”

The Palace’s next professional panto will be Aladdin, November 28 to January 3. Tickets are on sale and 2,700 have already flown out of the box office.