Life’s A Beach! (2017-19)
A brand new show that premiered in July 2017, and toured again in 2018, through a partnership between Black Country Touring and So Festival in Skegness. The show was based on real stories of seasonal visitors and year round residents. Supported by Magna Vitae , Creative Black Country, & Arts Council England.
Three caravans – each one a specially created performance space, each one a different part of an experience shared across cultures – the British seaside.
Three unique shows created from interviews with the people of the Black Country and Skegness. Together, they explore the glitz, the grot, and fish & chips; the sea, the sand and the seagulls ; the wind, the waves and the fairground rides that make our holiday experience.
But what’s it like to live there all year round? Meet the bingo caller who dresses as Elvis and the Lifeboat crew who keep us safe.
A special thanks to Black Country Living Museum for their support in the development of the production.
The show premiered at the Black Country Living Museum at the end of June 2017 followed by runs in July at So Festival (Skegness), Bantock House & Park (Wolverhampton), and Lightwoods house & Park (Smethwick).
We blew the dust off of our favourite theatre caravans in 2018, for a second summer tour! We took them to the Hartlepool Waterfront Festival, as well as to some of our much loved local venues, including Thimblemill Library, Caldmore Community Garden and MAC Birmingham.
In 2019 the caravans visited the Masala Festival in Newcastle.
Images by Dee Patel & Ashley Bird, postcard illustration and design by Sakab Bashir.