The Adventures of Pinocchio

With over 75,000 people attending the Grand Opera House pantomime every year, it’s never too early to book your tickets for the unmissable event of the festive season.

The Adventures of Pinocchio brings you all the hallmark features of a traditional Grand Opera House panto with thrilling song-and-dance, beautiful costumes, dazzling staging and effects and laugh-out-loud comedy.

Belfast’s much-loved pantomime Dame, May McFettridge­, who has appeared on the Theatre’s stage over 3,000 times, leads the cast as Mrs Geppetto. Joining May in her record-breaking 35^th Grand Opera House pantomime season are Belfast panto favourites Paddy Jenkins, as Jiminy Cricket, and comedian Adam C Booth in the title role of Pinocchio.

Following her stand-out and highly acclaimed performances as The Wicked Queen in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, and Captain Hook in last year’s production of The Adventures of Peter Pan, Jolene O’Hara plays the villain Stromboli. Making her Grand Opera House panto debut is Philippa O’Hara, Jolene’s sister, who plays The Fox. Together, the two have performed all over the world, both as individual artists as well as their hugely successful duo, The O’Hara Sisters.

Completing the line-up are Jayme-Lee Zanoncelli, and Maeve Byrne. Jayme-Lee, as The Blue Fairy, has appeared in numerous productions including TINA: The Tina Turner Musical, Bat Out of Hell and in 2025 appeared on the Grand Opera House stage as Columbia in The Rocky Horror Show. Maeve’s credits include the UK tour of Grease, Kiss Me Kate (Lyric Theatre, Belfast), and A Christmas Carol (The MAC, Belfast). Maeve, originally from Bangor, plays the role of The Cat.