THE curtain is set to rise on a pantomime at Hanley Swan - for the first time in more than 60 years.

The production of Cinderella is the first by Hanley Players since they last took to the stage in 1941.

The re-formed group, made up of residents from Hanley Swan and Hanley Castle, will perform the sell-out show at the village hall over three nights, starting on Friday, February 18.

Cast member Val Fare said she and a number of other local people had decided to revive the pantomime as a way of bringing the two villages together.

The idea was met with enthusiasm, attracting more than 50 people to the first audition last October.

"It was a matter of trying to pull everybody together, young and old, the whole shebang," said Mrs Fare.

"And it's worked. People have really mucked in."

There are 35 cast members, including dancers and singers, as well as behind-the-scenes staff.

"It may be just a village pantomime, but by god it's professional," said Mrs Fare.

There are notable differences between the 1941 and 2005 productions.

"In the 1941 version, Cinderella wasn't a poor, put-upon woman but a feisty lady who couldn't go to the ball because she was looking after evacuees," said Mrs Fare.

"Of course, there were no men in 1941, as they were fighting in the war, so everyone in the cast was a woman or a child."

The production was toured by motorbike, not only in the two villages, but in Severn Stoke, Upton and Malvern.

Proceeds went to North Sea food deliveries to Russia, whereas this time, funds raised will go towards the village hall.