For the past decade, The Old Electric has been making work rooted in Blackpool – turning local histories, overlooked voices and experiences, and seaside oddities into inventive community theatre. Now, as it celebrates its 10th anniversary year, it’s taking that spirit into community venues with a new production, Sideshows, Seagulls and Shanties.
Created by The Electric Sunshine Project’s community theatre company, the new show is a whirlwind tour through the stranger corners of Blackpool and Fylde folklore. Running for 50 minutes and combining song, movement, aerial performance, poetry and the company’s trademark pinch of preposterousness, it draws together a series of short stories inspired by local people, places and forgotten histories to create something unmistakably theirs.
From seagull goddesses to a morris-dancing inspired rave, devastating shipwrecks and the dark realities of life as a sideshow performer, to celebrating the cunning and entrepreneurial prowess of Blackpool’s BnB landladies, the show uses captivating short episodes to explore lesser-known histories and dualities of a seaside town that refuses to be forgotten.
The show has been developed by a group of local performers and creatives, some of whom have been making work together since the company was founded in 2016 and collaboration sits at the heart of the project.
For founder and artistic director Melanie Whitehead, the show reflects what The Old Electric has always tried to do.
“It continues to be our aim to find new ways of connecting creatively with our local communities and so this summer, we’re really looking forward to being more visible in a variety of places, spaces and events,” she says. “This company is such a hard-working and multi-skilled group who are really passionate about putting stories of Blackpool’s rich heritage of entertainment in the spotlight. We hope that audiences might enjoy themselves so much that they feel inspired to create their own future episodes.”
The production is part of a new chapter for the organisation, which left its Springfield Road venue in 2025 but has continued its workshops, artist development programmes and community projects from its pop-up space on Edward Street. Sideshows, Seagulls and Shanties looks set to prove that The Old Electric doesn’t need a theatre to bring quality performance to our communities.
Sideshows, Seagulls and Shanties is at: Ibbison Court Community Centre, 10 July; St Nicholas’ Church, 11 July (11am-12pm), Claremont Park Community Centre, 11 July; Boston Way Community Centre, 17 July; and Central Library, 18 July. Tickets are free, with a refundable £2.50 deposit. Advance booking is recommended as venues have limited capacity. Suitable for audiences aged 12+. Book here.
