Ross Petty

Ross Petty (born August 29, 1946) is a Canadian actor and theatre producer. He is best known for his eponymous production company, which staged what were promoted as "family musical" theatre productions in the British pantomime tradition in Toronto every holiday season from 1996 until 2022. Canadian Stage revived the series in 2024, referring to its production as a "Ross Petty Panto" and crediting him as executive producer emeritus. Early career Petty was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Petty began co-producing the pantos with Elliott in 1986, and continued until Elliott decided to no longer present the shows in Toronto in 1996. Petty's productions were based in the old English pantomime tradition, incorporating its broad comedy, winking asides that break the fourth wall, audience participation, and a man wearing a dress. However, Petty dropped the use of the principal boy while retaining the pantomime dame. To modernize his shows, Petty incorporated references to current, local, and/or pop cultural references and often used current popular music.

In 2006, Petty revived the 2004 production of Aladdin and embarked on a cross-Canada tour in November and December. The tour starred the same cast, which included former professional wrestler Bret Hart, and had tour stops in Vancouver, Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon, Calgary, Toronto, and Ottawa. In 2015, Petty retired from performing following the production of Peter Pan, but continued as a producer.

In 2020, Petty's planned production of Aladdin was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, There's No Place Like Home For The Holidays was performed as an online revue. This allowed audiences to watch the show from home while still incorporating music, dance, comedy, and audience interaction. Petty's 2021 production, Alice in Winterland, was similarly presented online that allowed audiences to watch from home.

Petty announced that the 2022 show Peter's Final Flight: The Pan-Tastical Family Musical would be the company's final production, with Petty reprising his role as a villain for the final production.

Revival In March 2024, it was announced that the Canadian Stage Company will be reviving Petty's annual family panto productions. The first production will be The Wizard of Oz, which will play at the Winter Garden Theatre between December 2024 and January 2025. Petty is executive producer emeritus of the revived series.

In December 2024, Canadian Stage announced that its 2025-2026 panto would be Robin Hood, scheduled for 45 performances at the Winter Garden.

Reception Many of Petty's productions were well-received by Toronto theatre critics, and many of his shows performed to sell-out audiences.

Petty's productions have received praise for introducing theatre to children at a young age, with many noting that there was a lack of family-friendly theatre in the Toronto area. Petty and his writers took care to ensure that "Plumbum" was presented with a sense of honesty and vulnerability.

However, Petty's productions have been criticized for their commercialism through product placement, as his shows project ads on a screen from their corporate sponsors during breaks in the show. Petty defended this decision, indicating that his shows would not be financially viable without commercial sponsorship. In 2014, Toronto theatre critic J. Kelly Nestruck felt the all-white casts were not reflective of Toronto's growing diversity and multiculturalism. In 2020, Petty issued an apology. He acknowledged the importance of ensuring more racially diverse casts and the importance of doing so for children in their audiences, and also pledged to create more inclusive casting processes.

Production history Ross Petty Productions Year Show title Cast Ref. 1996 Robin Hood Ross Petty, Karen Kain, Frank Augustyn 1997 Jack and the Beanstalk Ross Petty, Camilla Scott, Heath Lamberts, Jeff Hyslop 1998 Aladdin Ross Petty, Camilla Scott, Barry MacGregor, Ernie Coombs 1999 Cinderella Laura Bertram, Laird Mackintosh, Michael Lamport, William Vickers, Juan Chioran 2000 Peter Pan Ross Petty, Sheila McCarthy, Ernie Coombs, Robert McCarrol, Jayne Lewis 2001 Snow White Ross Petty, Graham Abbey, Melissa Thomson, Edward Glen, Allan Redford, Fred Penner, Peter Deiwick 2002 Robin Hood Ross Petty, Graham Abbey, Amy Walsh, Nora McLellan, Rex Harrington, Paul Alexander Nolan, Sara Topham, Simon Bradbury 2003 Cinderella Ross Petty, Jennifer Gould, Adam Brazier, Don Harron, Erin Davis, Mary Ellen Mahoney, Paul Alexander Nolan, Cliff Saunders, Jonathan Wilson 2004 Aladdin Ross Petty, Bret Hart, Jamie McKnight, Jennifer Dale, Derek McGrath 2005 Snow White Ross Petty, Elena Juatco, Ryan Malcolm, Gary Beals, Billy Klippert, Sean Cullen, Alan Frew 2006 Aladdin Ross Petty, Bret Hart, Jamie McKnight, Jennifer Dale, Derek McGrath 2008 Cinderella Ross Petty, Jake Epstein, Paula Brancati, Patty Sullivan, Adam Brazier, Dan Chameroy, Eddie Glen 2009 Robin Hood Ross Petty, Eva Avila, Yvan Pedneault, Dan Chameroy, Jessica Holmes, Jeff Irving 2010 Beauty and the Beast Ross Petty, Jake Epstein, Melissa O'Neil, Scott Thompson, Eddie Glen, Jake Simons, Lisa Lennox, Meghan Hoople 2011 Wizard of Oz Ross Petty, Elicia MacKenzie, Yvan Pedneault, Dan Chameroy, Jessica Holmes, Eddie Glen, Kyle Blair, Steve Ross 2012 Snow White Ross Petty, Graham Abbey, Melissa O'Neil, Bryn McAuley, David Cotton, Eddie Glen, Billy Lake, Reid Janisse 2013 The Little Mermaid Ross Petty, Chilina Kennedy, Dan Chameroy, Jordan Clark, Eddie Glen, Marc Devigne, Reid Janisse 2014 Cinderella Ross Petty, Danielle Wade, Dan Chameroy, Eddie Glen, Bryn McAuley, Cleopatra Williams, Jeff Lillico, Reid Janisse 2015 Peter Pan Ross Petty, Anthony MacPherson, Steffi DiDomenicantonio, Eddie Glen, Jessica Holmes, Dan Chameroy 2016 Sleeping Beauty AJ Bridel, Hilary Farr, James Daly, Paul Constable, Eddie Glen, Taveeta Szymanowicz, Alexandra Beaton, Lisa Horner, Laurie Murdoch 2017 A Christmas Carol AJ Bridel, Cyrus Lane, Dan Chameroy, Eddie Glen, Kyle Golemba 2018 Wizard of Oz Camille Eanga-Selenge, Eddie Glen, Sara-Jeanne Hosie, Michael De Rose, Eric Craig, Matt Nethersole, Daniel Williston 2019 Lil' Red Robin Hood AJ Bridel, Eddie Glen, Robert Markus, Sara-Jeanne Hosie, Lawrence Libor, Daniel Williston 2020 There's No Place Like Home For The Holidays Camille Eanga-Selenge, Dan Chameroy, Eddie Glen, AJ Bridel, Sara-Jeanne Hosie, Alex Wierzbicki, Roberta Battaglia 2025 Robin Hood: A Very Merry Family MusicalJulia Pulo, Daniel Williston, Damien Atkins, Praneet Akilla, Eddie Glen, Julius Sermonia, Malinda Carroll, Jean-Paul Parker, Kyle Brown, Cara Hunter, Joedan Bell, Sierra Holder

The 2020 production was a revue performed online due to the COVID-19 pandemic The couple reside in Toronto.

Filmography

+ Ross Petty film and television credits Year Title Role Notes 1978 All My Children Eddie Dorance #2 1983 Loving Friends and Perfect Couples 1 episode 1985–1986 Seeing Things Mensoff / Curtis 2 episodes 1986 A Judgement in Stone George Coverdale Theatrical film 1986 Spearfield's Daughter Roger Brisson Miniseries 1986 Hot Shots Mr. Fitzer 1 episode 1986 Perry Mason: The Case of the Shooting Star Peter Towne Television film 1987 Night Heat Thomas Penman 1 episode 1990 Counterstrike Dean Banks Episode: "A Little Purity" 1991 F/X2 Consigliere Theatrical film 1992 Counterstrike James Episode: "The Circus Ring" 1992–1997 X-Men: The Animated Series Ape, additional voices 16 episodes 1993 E.N.G. Dr. Calvini 1 episode 1993–1997 The Busy World of Richard Scarry (voice) 36 episodes 1994 Forever Knight Draper 1 episode 1994 Monster Force (various) 13 episodes 1996 Kung Fu: The Legend Continues Tom Cameron 1 episode 1996 Extreme Measures Dr. Garlock Theatrical film1998–1999Mythic WarriorsKing Pelias (voice)3 episodes 1999 Traders 1 episode 2000 The Secret Adventures of Jules Verne Baron Von Bresiau 1 episode 2002 Monk Henry Rutherford 1 episode 2003 Martha Inc: The Martha Stewart Story Television film