The playbill’s the thing: one of Littlehampton’s oldest amateur theatre companies continues call for memories of its 70-year performing history

One of Littlehampton’s oldest amateur dramatics societies, LPOS was founded in 1955 and performed regularly at Wick Hall until 1968 when it relocated to the Western Pavilion theatre, a forerunner of The Windmill Entertainment Centre which remains the main home of the group (now a registered charity) today.

Over the last seven decades, its members have staged lively productions ranging from the works of Gilbert & Sullivan and other operettas to modern musicals, and to reflect this diverse programme, in 2023 the company changed its name to LPOS Musical Productions.

Now, as part of LPOS’ 70th birthday celebrations, the group is putting together a digital collection of memorabilia reflecting its long performance history – and its members are keen to hear from anyone who might be able to fill in the gaps.

Anyone who has photos, programmes, or posters relating to any of LPOS’ productions – particularly from the group’s early years – who is able to email images or would be happy for items to be borrowed and carefully scanned, is warmly invited to contact [email protected].

Simon Jones, Chair of LPOS and director of Little Shop of Horrors, the first of a trio of shows that the company will stage at The Windmill during its anniversary year, said: ‘As one of Littlehampton’s oldest amateur dramatics companies, reaching 70 years is a tremendous milestone. Over these seven decades we have had hundreds of people go through the ranks of LPOS, and as we celebrate our anniversary we want to pause and look back on the vast array of talent that has brought us to where we are today, to recognise the people who created and fostered the society, and to share that history with our current members today.

‘We hope that people will let us borrow and scan their programmes, photos, and posters to help create a fuller picture of LPOS’ performing history – and to trace the history of amateur dramatics in the Littlehampton area, not just for our benefit but for the interest of the local community and other theatrical groups. When you look at photos of past productions, it is really interesting to see how the styles of performances have changed over the years, and the different takes on shows that we have performed multiple times over our history. A Gilbert and Sullivan production that we put on in LPOS’ earliest years would look very different to the same operetta staged in 1960, 1970, 1980, and so on. You can also explore the fashions of theatre, not just in terms of how costumes have changed, but in styles of staging and technical innovations, too. With the help of members past and present, we hope to be able to bring that rich history to life again.’

He added: ‘We also want to celebrate the work that we are doing today, and for our anniversary year, we have so many activities and entertainments planned for the coming months to show off the diverse talents of our current members in as many ways as possible. This includes three wonderful productions at the Windmill Entertainment Centre, beginning with Little Shop of Horrors in April, as well as concerts, community fun, and some special surprises that are yet to be announced.’

Gudrun Lehmann-Shanks, LPOS’ Heritage Officer, added: ‘Societies like LPOS are all about human achievements, setbacks, and connections, all of which play an important role in groups like us and our productions. Human memories are short, but materials like those we are asking people to lend us are wonderful reminders of what has come before. We hope that current and previous members will help us to fill in the gaps in our archive so that we can keep LPOS’ present and past alive as we go into our anniversary year.’

LPOS’ anniversary festivities include three upcoming productions at The Windmill: Little Shop of Horrors (2-5 April), a special concert performance of Patience with ‘birthday party’ refreshments (21 June), and Hello, Dolly! (15-18 October). For more details of these, and other celebratory events that the company will hold throughout 2025, see www.lpos.org.