946: The Amazing Story of Adolphus Tips

About the show

The play is based on a real-life event that occurred during the Second World War that was initially kept quiet. The 946 in the title is the death tally of servicemen who were killed while they were doing practice runs for D-Day at Slapton Sands in Devon. The play begins before the United States Army arrives, with Lily living in Slapton with her grandfather, her mother and her pet cat, Tips. Then some children that have been evacuated from London begin to arrive in the village, and she becomes friends with a boy named Barry. One day, after the army has arrived, two of the soldiers, who are black, stop by the school asking for directions. The students are taken aback because they have never seen a black person before. Lily kinda develops a crush on one of them nicknamed Adi, which is short for Adolphus. The villagers soon find themselves being forced out of their homes by the army, so they can use the area for practicing a military exercise for the impending attack at Normandy. When Lily realizes that Tips has been left behind, she makes an effort to find him, but can't, so she relies on the American soldiers who promise they will look for her cat, who eventually reunited Lily with Tips. The show features a band onstage performing original and period music.