Half A Sixpence

Minack Theatre

August 2001

Director – Wesley Henderson Roe

Musical Director – Philip Shute

Choreographer – Melanie Edwards

Production Manager – Claire Williams

Half a Sixpence was based on H.G. Wells’s novel Kipps: The Story of a Simple Soul. Arthur Kipps, an orphan who inherits a fortune, climbs the social ladder before losing everything and realizing that you just can’t buy happiness.

The novel is somewhat autobiographical, being inspired by the rapid changes in Wells’s own life when his early novels brought him financial security.
David Heneker wrote both music and lyrics. The show was originally written as a star vehicle for pop star Tommy Steele – indeed, Steele’s character appeared in 12 of the show’s 15 musical numbers.

CAST

Kipps – Mark Fallon

Ann – Annie Morwood

Sid – Tony Smith

Buggins – Anthony Chalmers

Pearce – Edz Barrett

Flo – Jan Croxson

Kate – Louise Ellard

Victoria – Sarah Perkins

Emma – Helen Donald

Shalford – Laurence Keal

Carshot – Tony Makepeace

Chitterlow – Chris Storer

Mrs Walsingham – Angela Sturgeon

Mrs Botting – Barbara Thomas

Helen Walsingham – Lizzie Brignall

Young Walsingham – Paul Turnbull

Dancers – Veronica Callow, Cathy Hough, Wendy Howard, Kate Leader, Hamilton Faber, Jeremy Rye, Rob Spurgeon

Chorus – Rebecca Brown, Suzy Deal, Marion Mclaren, Guy Pearson, Barbara Thomas

Teenagers – Jonathan Raynham, Samantha Raynham, Emma Taylor, Lee Thomas

Dressed Crew – Jane Bean, Peter Czaja, Helen Smith, Eric Williams

CREW

Stage Manager – Peter Czaja

Sound Recording – Stuart Vaughan

Sound Operation – Stuart Costigan

Lighting Design – Mike Bradbury

Costumes – Suzy Deal

Staging Design – Wesley Henderson Roe

FOH Manager – Clare Henderson Roe