BrumHour was invited to see Half A Sixpence by The Alexandra.
Please note this post contains affiliate links.
For Brum Radio’s Interval Theatre, BrumHour’s Dave Massey spoke to Dan Parker appearing in Half a Sixpence as Kipps.
By Julie Wallis
Half a Sixpence at The Alexandra
BMOS Musical Theatre Company presents Half a Sixpence at The Alexandra Theatre all this week, based on the book Kipps by H.G. Wells.
Half a Sixpence tells the story of Arthur Kipps, (Daniel Parker) an orphan and his childhood sweetheart, Ann (Annabel Pilcher). Arthur gives Ann half of a sixpence as a love token.
Years pass, Arthur gets a job in Shalfords emporium in Folkestone. Ann travels to Folkestone to meet Arthur and hopefully rekindle the romance as adults but Arthur comes into money from an inheritance and gets engaged to Helen (Carys Wilson), leaving Ann humiliated and broken hearted.
In the meantime, plenty of people are interested in getting their hands on Arthur’s inheritance, including Helen’s family, who are not as well off as they first appear. Has Arthur invested his money wisely?
Jam-packed with musical numbers throughout, Half a Sixpence will have you tapping your toes to the likes of If the rain’s got to fall and She’s too far above me, by the time you get to Flash! Bang! Wallop! you really will clap your hands and stamp your feet.
The casting was perfect with Daniel Parker making the perfect ‘cheeky, little cockney’ who also has the talent to be able to carry off all the songs. Once matched with Annabel Pilcher as Ann, who does have a beautiful singing voice, and a full orchestra this becomes a wonderful show. This is a large cast and I wish I could give credit to everyone who was on stage.
The costumes were outstanding, I can’t even begin to imagine how much work has gone into the countless outfits that I saw last night. Suzanne Harris as head of wardrobe does a great job. There are a lot of outfit changes and when Mrs. Walsingham (Jo Smith) is in her full taffeta gown and diamond encrusted tiara at a very formal event, it did make for a visually beautiful scene. Suzi Budd as choreographer has done a sterling job in this all singing, all dancing show.
No review for this production would be complete without mentioning Jake Genders who plays Chitterlow, a flamboyant playwright who persuades Arthur to invest in his play. He was so enthusiastic in his character that I couldn’t help but smile every time he was on stage.
This is a very uplifting show that just made me happy. Don’t let the weather bring you down, come along to The Alexandra Theatre for a dose of sunshine and lose yourself in 1905 Folkestone for the evening.
Half a Sixpence is at The Alexandra until Saturday 15th June. Book tickets with BrumHour’s affiliate link >> HERE <<.
