A pantomime dame is a role in British and Irish musical theatre often performed at Christmas. It is part of the theatrical tradition of travesti portrayal of female characters by male actors in drag. Dame characters are often played either in an extremely camp style. They usually wear heavy make up and big hair. It can take a couple of hours to get into the character, hair, make up and dress for Irishman Rob Murphy who plays Dame Buffy in the panto ‘Beauty and The Beast, A Sammy and Buffy Adventure’ at the National Stadium, Dublin. I photographed Rob in early December 2024 during rehearsals. As well as acting, directing and educating young musical theatre performers Rob has been playing a Pantomime Dame for over 12 years.
