There's nothing like a Dame – especially if 'she' happens to be Kelvin Hastings-Smith.

A respected lawyer for most of the year, with a wardrobe and demeanour befitting his profession, come December he undergoes what might be described as an annual 'transformation' into a big, blousy, woman whose outrageous wardrobe includes high heels, over-the-top make-up and hair, and whose personality becomes a perfect blend of the comical, commanding, and mischievous.

Indeed, so convincing is Mr. Hastings-Smith's 'alter ego' that children scream with delight and adults roll in the aisles at the very sight of him, er, her.

So, when the curtain goes up on 'Snow White and the Seven Sisters' at City Hall tomorrow evening, there again will be the man who has filled the larger-than-life role of the dame in eight of 11 Bermuda Musical and Dramatic Society (BMDS) pantomimes. This year, he will be working his hilarious magic as the pop icon Madonna.

The traditional role is a plum one, and much sought-after. Always played by a man dressed as a woman, the dame is very dominant throughout the production, but getting the portrayal right not as easy as it looks – as Mr. Hastings-Smith learned in his first casting.

He said: "We had a professional director who had played the dame for 20 to 30 years. He said the art of being a dame is that (a) The audience knows you're a man, (b) You don't come over as overly feminate, (c) You find the balance of those two, and that is what I do. I think it works, and everyone knows I am a man – hopefully."

'Hopefully' because the actor recalls with a wry smile that some years ago, when he and another male actor, Shawn Angiers, played two sisters in a pantomime, with him as the dame, some children were overheard in the interval saying, "Mummy, those sisters are so funny, and do you know, one of them is a man?"

"In 'Snow White', the children's chorus sings 'Surround Me' and they keep saying, 'You are a man who likes to dress as a woman'. Of course, I immediately put them right," Mr. Hastings-Smith adds.

While he has landed the coveted role more times than not, the veteran actor stresses that he takes nothing for granted, and auditions each year like everyone else.

Yet he reveals: "I have a little box at home which has my rehearsal heels in it. Every summer I look at it lovingly and wonder if I should audition for the panto again. The shoes are a little bit like Dorothy's in 'The Wizard of Oz'."

In any case, being prepared is important. Since men do not naturally prance about in ladies shoes, it takes practice to get the balance right, the walk to look natural, and the ability to move easily without wobbling or toppling over. By now, Mr. Hastings-Smith has it down to a fine art, although he admitted at the time of this interview that the shoes for 'Snow White' were an unknown quantity.

"When you are rehearsing you should always do so with a piece of your costume on, which to me is the shoes," he says. "The dame has to run around, dance, jump up and down a lot, and generally be the boiler room of the performance. I have yet to see the boots and shoes costume designer Nicola Wilkinson has come up with, but she did ask me whether I could walk in seven to 10-inch heels, and my answer was 'Yes, of course'."

Asked what qualities he feels are requisite to successfully playing the dame, and what his role in this pantomime entails, Mr. Hastings-Smith says: "A certain style is needed. The dame has to be very energetic, comfortable with thinking on her feet, and able to keep up an interaction with the audience. Carol Birch has written a great script – all 91 pages of it – and that is the framework for the dame's role.

"The story, the plot – you know what it will take, but Carol also gives the dame a bit of a free hand later on, because the dame is the person who has the immediate interaction with the audience.

"So, I will include the audience in the 'in' jokes; I will be sarcastic to them, and I will certainly be encouraging everyone to take part. Hopefully, those in Bermuda know that, at the panto, audience participation is as important as any of the characters on stage."

Also integral to this actor's performance is keeping up to date on what is happening in the community, so that the dame's ad libs are both topical and timely.

"The print media is very important," Mr. Hastings-Smith says. "I scan the paper every day to find out if there is any topical story which will lead to a comment, joke, or whatever else. The adults love the innuendo and the topical comments. Carol started writing her script in January, so while some of the jokes she has included were topical at the time, they may not be quite so topical now. Hopefully, if the audience is awake, they will recognise that 'Snow White' is a truly Bermudian panto."

Taking the words 'Snow White' literally, Philip McIntosh's set will feature "plenty of snow, ice and cold", and even live 'penguins'.

As one of the seven sisters, all of whom have pop star names, 'Madonna' is apparently not well liked by her siblings, so they give her a hard time.

"I seem to be the pummeling bag for some of them, and the source of much irritation, probably because I have a bit of silver hair as I am the oldest," the dame says. "As a group, however, the sisters are really very funny. If we are not too careful they are going to steal the show, when really it is all about Snow White".

Giving a run-down of some of his fellow cast members and others, Mr. Hastings-Smith says that of his 'sisters' (Jenny Burrell, Val Butterfield, Reneka Hill, Kathy Kawaley, Debbie Raat, and Lesley Wharton) in real life four are teachers, one is a nurse, and the other is a junior executive in the human relations department of a major accounting firm.

"So I am surrounded by all these brainy people, but the girls are a delight to work with, even if they do beat me up.

"The king is played by Alan Brooks, who is new to the stage. He is an ex-Royal Naval officer, and a real hoot to work with. The king's faithful servant is played by Connie Dey, and Jennifer Osmond as the evil queen does a great job. The comic duo, Grimshaw and Jacques, are played respectively by Ben Smith, an art teacher, and James Bennett, an accountant – but we won't hold that against him.

"The two of them are a riot. I think the audience will fall in love with them because they are so funny, and really do interact so well."

Of choreographer Devaune Rattery, who also plays the mirror, Mr. Hastings-Smith has high praise.

"I have seen Devaune rise from a young principal in a panto, probably 11 or 12 years ago, to what he is now, and what he is now is a professional dancer, a wonderful actor, and a man with such personality that he shines 'Theatre'. He is Theatre.

"Devaune gets the best out of people and needs to be given as much opportunity as he can get to succeed in the world of theatre. He is really remarkable. As the mirror his performance is spell-binding. Devaune is off to England to make his fame and fortune, and I wish him every success. He is a fantastic role model for Bermuda and Bermudians."

Mr. Hastings-Smith notes that there are 51 actors in the production, and commends the very large and invaluable number of people who work backstage, at the box office and elsewhere for the excellent job they do.

" 'Snow White and the Seven Sisters' is going to be a great production, with lots of laughs for the audience to react to," he promises.

"We expect lots of 'He's behind you', and the audience will also find that some members of the cast will join them in the theatre. We're ready to go, and we expect about 4,500 to 4,700 people to see the show, which is no bad thing."

For performances dates and times see the Bermuda Calendar. For ticket information see www.boxoffice.bm