Brentwood Theatre has 35 performances of The Elves and the Shoemaker at £15 from 10 to 24 December, but no traditional panto. Nearest are Basildon and Chelmsford.

Brentwood has no traditional Christmas pantomime this season. What it does have is a 35-performance run of a children’s Christmas musical at Brentwood Theatre for £15 a ticket, plus a Dickens play, two festive films and a dinosaur panto in October.

Updated 28 September: rechecked both venues; there is still no Christmas pantomime on either listing. The theatre now gives a separate box office number, below.

Last year the town had a full-scale panto: Beauty and the Beast at the Brentwood Centre from 13 December 2025 to 4 January 2026, produced by Sophisticated Entertainment and billed as Brentwood’s first ever resident pantomime. There is no 2026-27 equivalent. The Brentwood Centre’s own ticket portal, checked on 5 September, lists sixteen events on sale and none of them is a pantomime. (The Brentwood Centre ticket portal)

Brentwood Theatre’s Christmas programme is the town’s whole festive offer, and it is worth knowing what is in it before you book a train to Basildon.

The Elves and the Shoemaker, 10 to 24 December, £15

This is the big one: 35 performances over 13 days, all at £15, at Brentwood Theatre, 15 Shenfield Road, CM15 8AG.

It is aimed squarely at the youngest audience. The theatre calls it “a joyful, interactive adventure for children aged 3-7 and their grown-ups”, with “a team of mischievous elves with a fun K-pop vibe”. Running time is about one hour with no interval, which is the practical difference between this and a two-and-a-half-hour panto if you have a three-year-old. (Brentwood Theatre, The Elves and the Shoemaker)

The full schedule, from the theatre’s own listing:

Date Times
Thu 10 Dec 10am, 1pm
Sat 12 Dec 11am, 2pm, 6pm
Sun 13 Dec 11am, 2pm
Mon 14 Dec 10am, 1pm, 6pm
Tue 15 Dec 10am, 1pm
Wed 16 Dec 10am, 1pm, 5pm
Thu 17 Dec 10am, 1pm, 6pm
Sat 19 Dec 11am, 2pm, 6pm
Sun 20 Dec 11am, 2pm, 6pm
Mon 21 Dec 2pm, 5pm
Tue 22 Dec 11am, 2pm, 6pm
Wed 23 Dec 11am, 2pm, 6pm
Thu 24 Dec 10am, 12pm, 2pm

Note the gaps. There is nothing on Friday 11 or Friday 18 December, and the run stops on Christmas Eve rather than carrying on into the new year, which is what a traditional panto would do. If you are used to booking a show between Christmas and New Year in Brentwood, that option does not exist this year.

A Christmas Carol, 3 to 5 December, £17

Local company 1:4:9 Productions stage the Dickens, in an adaptation by Kathryn Waters. Evening performances at 7.30pm on Thursday 3, Friday 4 and Saturday 5 December, with a Saturday matinee as well. Running time is 2 hours 20 minutes including a 20-minute interval, so it is a grown-up evening rather than a children’s outing. Schools buy ten tickets and get one teacher in free. Concessions are available. (Brentwood Theatre, A Christmas Carol)

Two festive films at £5

  • The Muppet Christmas Carol, Wednesday 16 December, 6pm
  • It’s a Wonderful Life, Thursday 17 December, 12.30pm

Both are £5 at Brentwood Theatre.

The panto that is not at Christmas

If it is the shouting and the audience participation you are after, Brentwood Theatre has one, but it is in half term. Dinosaur Timewarp: The Pantomime plays on Sunday 25 October at 1pm and 3.30pm, £14, described as a “fully interactive panto-style Jurassic adventure” with an “Oh no, it didn’t?! Oh yes it did!” running through it. It lasts about 70 minutes with no interval, and there are photos with a baby T-Rex after the show. (Brentwood Theatre, Dinosaur Timewarp)

The theatre’s website now gives its box office number as 0333 666 4466, with 01277 200 305 listed as the venue’s own phone. Brentwood Theatre is a registered charity, number 285716.

The nearest traditional pantomimes

Both are a short drive or train ride, and both are already selling.

Aladdin, Towngate Theatre, Basildon, 26 November 2026 to 3 January 2027. Tickets from £16, running time about 2 hours 20 minutes. Sophie Ladds and Ian Hallard return as Abanazar and Widow Twankey. There is a BSL interpreted performance on Friday 18 December at 6pm and a relaxed performance on Tuesday 15 December at 5pm. Groups and schools buy ten and get one free, on 01268 205 300. The theatre is at St Martin’s Square, Basildon SS14 1DL. (Towngate Theatre)

Cinderella, Chelmsford Theatre, 27 November 2026 to 3 January 2027. Tickets £19.50 to £34.50, family packages £80 to £121, running time 140 minutes. The preview night on 27 November is £19.50 a seat and schools pay £15 with one in ten free. The relaxed, sensory-adapted performance is Monday 28 December at 2pm, the captioned one is Tuesday 29 December at 2pm and the BSL interpreted one is Wednesday 30 December at 2pm. The theatre warns of flashing lights and loud noises. Fairfield Road, Chelmsford CM1 1JG, box office 01245 606505. (Chelmsford Theatre)

Chelmsford Theatre said in its own announcement that more than 20 per cent of tickets had already gone, so the relaxed and BSL dates in particular are worth booking early.

What is still open

  • Whether a traditional panto appears in Brentwood late. Nothing on either venue’s website suggests one, and a December-opening panto would normally have gone on sale by now.
  • Cast for the Brentwood Theatre shows. Not published.

Looking for something to do that is not a theatre? Our guide to things to do in Brentwood has the deer park, the bunker and Ingatestone Hall with current prices, and the Christmas lights switch-on page has the free High Street events in Brentwood, Ingatestone and Shenfield.

This page was checked on 5 September 2026.