Aladdin At The Wolverhampton Grand – A Chat With Michael Greco

We will soon be arriving at my favourite season of the year. I am, of course, talking about Panto Season, and this year the Wolverhampton Grand Theatre will be showcasing Aladdin. The show recently had its official launch in Wolverhampton, and I was lucky enough to go along to chat to some of the cast and creatives.

Today I’m bringing you an interview with the wonderful actor Michael Greco, who this year will be playing everyone’s favourite baddie, Ebenazar.

Fashion Mommy: Welcome to Wolverhampton Michael, can you tell me a little bit about your character in Aladdin?

Michael Greco: I’m playing Ebenazar, who of course is the baddie. What really appealed about my character is that the producers want Ebenazar to be even more evil than normal, so that he receives even more booing and hissing. With this character I will know that the more booing and hissing I receive, the better I have done my job. He’ll have a bit of a back story too…wait and see.

FM: Why do you think so many actors love to play the baddie?

MG: I think it’s because the reaction you receive is instantaneous, and that the more you get the more you know you’re doing a good job. Most people are inherently good generally in real life, so it is good to sometimes be bad, and play at being bad, if only for a few hours!

FM: What is your own favourite panto?

MG: I actually think it is Aladdin, I genuinely think it’s got it all, great characters, the storyline and plot, everything. I love the Disney version with Robin Williams as the genie. I love the diversity of the characters.

FM: I have to ask about Beppe Di Marco in Eastenders. He was such an iconic character – would you ever consider going back?

MG: I loved my time in Eastenders, and absolutely I would consider going back. It’s filmed about 20 minutes from where I live. That said, it’s not the same as what it was, but with a good script, storyline etc, yes I would love to go back. Maybe they could bring back some of the characters like Beppe and Grant who people liked and identified with.

FM: You say your role in Hatfield and the McCoys is your favourite, tell me about that. Had you heard the story of the feud before?

MG: Well the saying the real McCoy came from this feud, due to the using of lookalikes to protect McCoy, so it is quite a story. I played such a quirky character – I loved that, it was something completely different. And playing alongside the likes of Kevin Costner, who was in one of my all time favourite films Dances with Wolves, and the likes of the late Bill Paxton and the brilliant Tom Berenger ( who was so evil in Platoon), was such a great experience. I got rave reviews. Alex Ferns (who played Trevor in Eastenders) is another actor I really admire who has moved away from soaps to play a range of roles with great reviews – he serves as an inspiration.

Michael Greco is sure to be amazing in this years panto, you can get your tickets here.

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