The Old Electric proudly presents Memoirs of a Blackpool Mermaid, a mesmerising new production that brings to life powerful stories inspired by Blackpool. This play intertwines forgotten folklore with vivid tales from the town’s local history, illuminating Blackpool’s unique heritage while inviting audiences to reflect on whether anything truly changes.
Memoirs of a Blackpool Mermaid is performed by The Electric Sunshine Project’s Community Theatre Company; Th’ESPs. An ever-evolving group of passionate and skilled local creatives, some of whom have been working together since 2016. Uniquely this company has also written, devised, choreographed and created the musical score, props and costumes for the show.
Striking puppetry, as a signature of Th’ESPs performances, is used throughout and outfits designed by 3D artist Janine Walker and brought to life by students from Park Community Academy plus vocal soundscapes created by Park students as part of their BTEC studies with local creatives Buzz Bury and Abi Hellam underscore the piece. A newer element of this company’s storytelling is aerial performance; used to add layers of visual spectacle in the storytelling.
Let’s hear from the cast
Jamie Foster
I am Jamie, I’ve been a part of the electric sunshine project since 2016, when it began in a pub. I’ve enjoyed being a part of nearly every show and project since then. TESP has given me my voice and my confidence has soared.
The process of writing and getting the shows together is whacky and wonderful. I love how ideas form and connect like a web. Rehearsals always have their blips, but this is all part of the process – every time I just think “trust the process” and it always comes together nicely to make these weird, wonderful performances.
We are such a great close knit family in the rehearsal space that sometimes we don’t have to say anything to understand what we are saying , we just know and pick up on emotion. I am awkward anywhere else and have a hard time with expressing or reading emotion and body language yet I still know when one of my theatre siblings needs a hug or for me to listen and they are the same with me. It’s just a feeling you know.
If I could sum up our rehearsals in one word that word we be chaotic. They aren’t normal, they aren’t straight forward nor stiff and rigid or tiresome (don’t get me wrong, I leave tired but not in a bad way). I’m not going to lie they can be frustrating but that’s through me trying to conceptualise and I often think things are more complex then they actually are. We adapt and I’ll always have my theatre family to explain in a way I can understand.
Thank you for reading, it has been a pleasure writing this for you – I hope you’ll have as much enjoyment when you come and see the show. We could do with some more audiences for the matinee show on Saturday 🙂
“… the town is a wellspring of joy for visitors and we skip through history at a rapid pace in this show about Blackpool, about exploitation, about joy and most importantly, about hope.”
Liz Wilkinson
I wouldn’t regularly spend an evening wrapped in a net and singing sea shanties, but at the moment it’s taking up quite a lot of my time. I’m surrounded by a group of people in similarly unusual situations too…
We’ve been devising and rehearsing our new show ‘Memoirs of A Blackpool Mermaid’ since January, including developing our skills in aerial silks, puppetry, creating original music and writing a script from scratch. As we approach the performance week, it turns out that our Blackpool Mermaid has some interesting stories to tell! We all take on a range of immortal and ever-changing characters and are able to be flexible in bringing them to life.
One of the most interesting and constantly surprising things about devising theatre is the strange directions it takes you in and this show has been particularly winding in its route; not for want of material but because there was simply so much we wanted to talk and write about. We’ve been researching how the town is a wellspring of joy for visitors and we skip through history at a rapid pace in this show about Blackpool, about exploitation, about joy and most importantly, about hope.
I must go now though; a lady with a giant snake is calling me….
Melanie Whitehead, TESP Artistic Director, said: “We’ve looked at some of the threads that make Blackpool the town it is today; an amazing town built on dreams, imagination and creative thinking, a town which always aims for bigger, brighter and ultimately more commercially successful; we’ve spent some time questioning what we lose in this quest and in our unique way brought this to life through a series of mini stories which are all sewn together.
As a company we’re always evolving, this year we took the big step to leave behind our beloved space on Springfield Rd, as it was no longer meeting our needs, we’re really grateful that we’re able to show our work in the beautiful, brilliant and totally bonkers collection of spaces that is the Winter Gardens, a suitably fitting home for this show!”
This captivating performance brings together local residents, artists, and storytellers to weave a rich tapestry of Blackpool’s folklore and history through powerful storytelling and evocative theatre. With a talented cast and creative team, audiences can expect an intimate yet immersive experience that shines a light on the town’s unique heritage. The show will explore the timeless question of whether anything truly changes in a place like Blackpool. The venue is fully accessible — please inform us at the time of booking about any access requirements.
Performances take place at the Winter Gardens’ Conference & Exhibition Centre on Leopold Grove on Friday 4 July at 7pm and Saturday 5 July at 2pm + 7pm. The show runs approximately 2 hours including a 15 minute interval and is suitable for ages 14 and over. Tickets are priced at £8 and can be purchased online at www.theoldelectric.co.uk or on the phone at 0752212308
Photography by Corey Wong
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