Trafalgar Entertainment and ATG Entertainment to be chief sponsor partners for Pantomime Association

Exclusive: The UK Pantomime Association has announced a sponsorship partnership with Trafalgar Entertainment and ATG Entertainment.

As part of the agreement, Trafalgar Entertainment and ATG Entertainment will alternate as hosts of the Pantomime Awards. The 2025 ceremony will take place on 13 April at the New Victoria Theatre, Woking, marking the first year of this arrangement.

The UK Pantomime Association promotes the creative and cultural significance of pantomime through events, talks, and its annual awards. This partnership with two of the UK’s largest theatre operators aims to support the organisation’s work in recognising talent across the sector.

Simon Sladen, chair of the UK Pantomime Association, said the partnership “demonstrates a strong commitment to celebrating and acknowledging the significant role the artform plays in the UK’s cultural landscape.”

Chris McGuigan of Trafalgar Entertainment and Claire Dixon of ATG Entertainment both emphasised pantomime’s role in introducing audiences to theatre and its importance in the regional theatre landscape – with McGuigan highlighting that “panto season has long been the lifeblood of regional theatre in this country – for many children a trip to a pantomime is their first experience of live theatre and live entertainment.”

Dixon agrees, stating that the “agreement helps raise the status and profile of what’s by far the country’s most popular type of family theatre.”