Singers awaken for Kipps

AMODERN-DAY, family-friendly musical is coming to Reading next month. Kipps – The New Half a Sixpence Musical, will be performed by The Sainsbury Singers.

Written by Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes, and Olivier Award-winning composers and lyricists George Stiles and Anthony Drewe, the show features well-known numbers from the original show, including Flash, Bang, Wallop.

It also introduces a host of new songs, with high energy numbers, and toe tapping dance routines that breathe new life into a classic tale.

Set in a turn-of-the-century seaside town, it tells the tale of Arthur Kipps, an over-worked draper’s assistant who dreams of a better and more fulfilling life.

When he unexpectedly inherits a fortune, it confuses everything he thought he knew, and he finds himself torn between his childhood sweetheart,

Ann, and upper crust Helen Walsingham.

Director and society member Kaz Grainger, said: “It’s the perfect blend of feel-good dance numbers, lovable characters and memorable, catchy tunes that will leave you clapping and tapping all the way home.

“It’s high energy from start to finish, and suitable for the whole family.”

Sainsbury Singers previous shows have included: Guys and Dolls, Little Shop of Horrors, Chess, The Wind in the Willows, Made in Dagenham and most recently, The Addams Family.

They have been entertaining borough audiences for more than 85 years, and were the first to perform in Reading’s Hexagon theatre when it opened 45 years ago.

■ Kipps can be seen at The Hexagon, from Wednesday, May 15, through to Saturday, May 18. Curtain up is at 7.30pm, with an additional Saturday matinee at 2.30pm. Friday’s performance will be accompanied by a BSL translator. Tickets cost: £25,

£22 for concessions, and £14 for under 14s. For more, visit: www. whatsonreading.com