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White Rock panto the scene of surprise proposal

Actor pops the question to girlfriend on stage at Coast Capital Playhouse.

White Rock’s annual Christmas pantomime took a new and unexpected turn in its final performance.

And the new denouement – a surprise marriage proposal – quickly became a YouTube hit.

Joe Thompson, 31, proposed to fiancée Jennifer Tiles, 30, in front of a packed house at Coast Capital Playhouse for the last show in the run of Rumpelstiltskin Dec. 28.

Tears and white make-up, ran down the face of Tiles, in costume for her role as comic animal character ‘Rocky Raccoon’, as Thompson climbed onstage, serenaded her with a modified version of Enrique Iglesias’ Hero, then fell to his knees as he profferred her a ring and asked for her hand.

Quickly recovering in true trouper manner, she answered with a mock-howled “I do!”

Date of the wedding, which will be in Hawaii, is June 28.

“Jenny was really surprised,” Thompson told the Peace Arch News, adding that only a handful of people knew what he was planning, including the show’s director, Susanne de Pencier, and musical director, Shelley Eckstein.

“Susanne had prepped the cast that she was going to do a closing night speech,” Thompson said.

While they were already informally engaged, Thompson said, he decided he wanted to go all out for a proper engagement speech, complete with ring.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdee6uQdU8s