Aladdin runs at Stafford Gatehouse Theatre from Friday 4 December to Sunday 3 January, 42 performances, seats £22.50 to £37.50, relaxed show 19 December.
Stafford Gatehouse Theatre’s 2026 pantomime is Aladdin, running from Friday 4 December 2026 to Sunday 3 January 2027. The theatre’s own listing has the full schedule up and on sale, 42 performances in all, with seats from £22.50 to £37.50 depending on the date.
It stars Mark Rhodes and David Phipps-Davis, the pair who have led the last three Gatehouse pantos, with Samantha Spragg back alongside them. Imagine Theatre produces it.
The cheapest and most expensive seats
Prices move by date, and the spread is wide. Each performance is sold in six bands, and these are the top and bottom of each block, straight from the theatre’s schedule.
| Dates | Cheapest seat | Dearest seat |
|---|---|---|
| Fri 4 Dec (7pm), Sun 6 Dec (5pm) | £22.50 | £29.50 |
| Sat 5, Sun 6, Wed 9, Fri 11, Sun 13 (5pm), Wed 16, Thu 17 Dec, Sat 19 (11am), and 2 to 3 Jan | £26.50 | £33.50 |
| Sat 12, Sun 13 (1pm), and 26 to 31 Dec | £28.50 | £35.50 |
| Sat 19 (3pm and 7pm) to Thu 24 Dec | £30.50 | £37.50 |
The single cheapest way in is the opening night, Friday 4 December at 7pm, at £22.50. The Christmas week performances from 19 to 24 December are the dearest, topping out at £37.50.
Every performance date
The run is not continuous. There is no show on 7, 8, 10, 14, 15, 18 or 25 December, or on 1 January. Everything else, in the theatre’s own listing:
- December: Fri 4 (7pm), Sat 5 (2pm, 7pm), Sun 6 (1pm, 5pm), Wed 9 (7pm), Fri 11 (7pm), Sat 12 (2pm, 7pm), Sun 13 (1pm, 5pm), Wed 16 (7pm), Thu 17 (7pm), Sat 19 (11am, 3pm, 7pm), Sun 20 (1pm, 5pm), Mon 21 (1pm, 5pm), Tue 22 (1pm, 5pm), Wed 23 (1pm, 5pm), Thu 24 (11am, 3pm), Sat 26 (1pm, 5pm), Sun 27 (1pm, 5pm), Mon 28 (2pm, 7pm), Tue 29 (1pm, 5pm), Wed 30 (1pm, 5pm), Thu 31 (11am, 3pm)
- January 2027: Sat 2 (3pm, 7pm), Sun 3 (11am, 3pm)
Christmas Eve is a matinee day only, 11am and 3pm, and New Year’s Eve is the same. The last performance is 3pm on Sunday 3 January 2027.
Accessible performances
Two are scheduled, both listed by the theatre:
- Relaxed performance: Saturday 19 December, 11am
- BSL interpreted performance: Sunday 27 December, 1pm
The relaxed show is the 11am on the busiest Saturday of the run, so it is the one to book early if you need it.
Who is in it
Samantha Spragg is the returning name the theatre led with. She played Poison Ivy in Jack and the Beanstalk in the 2024 to 2025 season and the wicked fairy Carabosse in what the theatre calls “the record-breaking production of Sleeping Beauty last year”. On coming back she said: “I’m absolutely delighted to be back in Stafford. The audiences are brilliant, the town is lovely and Aladdin is going to be spectacular!”
Mark Rhodes, a double BAFTA-winning presenter, and David Phipps-Davis complete the trio. The theatre says they return “after three sell-out pantomime seasons together”.
What is not published
The theatre has not printed a running time or an age guidance for Aladdin, which are the two questions parents of small children usually want answered before booking. Nor has it named the rest of the cast beyond the three leads. Box office is 01785 619080 if you need either before they go online. We will add both here when the theatre publishes them.
Other Christmas shows at the Gatehouse
Aladdin is not the only festive booking. The theatre’s What’s On also carries The Gingerbread Boy, Santa’s Best Ever Christmas, described as the show where every child gets a present from Santa, and Tinderella, an adults-only panto carrying an “Age restriction 18+ (Strictly no kids!)” warning. Check which one you are booking.
Getting there
The Gatehouse is on Eastgate Street in the town centre, a few minutes’ walk from Market Square. The show time you pick changes what you pay to park. Every charging council car park in Stafford runs a flat £1.20 from 6pm, but only if you arrive after 6pm, so a 7pm performance is a £1.20 evening and a matinee is not. Sunday is also a flat £1.20 rather than free, which covers the five Sundays in this run. Our parking guide has the hour-by-hour tariffs, and the roadworks and travel page covers anything currently closed on the way in.
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