Stories told by holidaymakers, residents and daytrippers to the seaside are featured in a new show, Life’s a Beach, which can be seen in three caravans in Lincolnshire and the Black Country.
“We've interviewed a broad range of people from very different backgrounds across the Black Country and Skegness and heard some beautiful, funny, sad and heart-warming stories,” said co-director Frances Land.
“We’ve used them to create three very different short performances lasting up to 20 minutes each which will transport our audiences to the wonderful and eccentric world of our British seaside towns.”
Life’s A Beach is presented by Black Country Touring in partnership with SO Festival.
The first caravan transports people to a seafront arcade filled with sounds of slot machines and bingo. The caller, clad in an Elvis outfit, tells stories about moving to this town “so every day can be a holiday”.
The second mobile home is the caravan from hell. The tell-tale signs of the previous visitors are all too obvious and what lurks in the cupboards is anyone’s guess.
In the third caravan, you can meet true local heroes—the lifeboat crew. You can stare into the oily black water and hear stories both funny and tragic.
Life’s a Beach can be seen at the SO Festival at Skegness on Saturday1 and Sunday 2 July. It then trundles along to Bantock House Museum and Park, Finchfield Road, Wolverhampton from Friday 7 until Sunday 9 July and Lightwood’s House and Park, Smethwick, West Midlands from Thursday 13 until Sunday 16 July.