Irish travel agents and their families got a taste of a real Christmas experience, the pantomime, with Princess Cruises. Agents from around the country joined the Princess Cruises team to meet Sammy Sausages at the National Stadium where he is appearing in Aladdin.
The long-time panto star, Alan Hughes, in full regalia, delighted the guests with a special appearance ahead of the show and the consummate professional smiled and posed for photos with delighted children (and grown-ups!).
With capacity significantly reduced and the audiences in face masks having undergone Covid checks, the Sunday afternoon performance was different but only for a few moments. Quickly, the audience in Santa hats, antlers and colourful Christmas jumpers settled in for a spectacular stage show and the outside world was forgotten.
The endless sequins, singing, showmanship as well as Sparkle along with the hysterical Buffy picking on poor Pat (unsuspecting father in the audience) kept everyone wonderfully amused. The laughter (despite the masks) was infectious and a dose of family entertainment cures many maladies.
Rebecca Kelly, Senior Sales Manager of Princess Cruises said that the team were acutely conscious of the very challenging year that agents had faced and wanted to recognise and give thanks for all their hard work over the last 20 months. It was a fantastic opportunity to get into the festive mood and remind ourselves how much a smile does for the soul.
Princess Cruises always value top class entertainment for the family and the panto was a perfect match. Like travel, the panto has had a tough run due to Covid but the performance of Aladdin felt like the perfect tonic to banish those variant blues.