British Youth Music Theatre return to the stage of Birmingham Hippodrome’s Patrick Studio this weekend, presenting an enchanting new musical, Sea Change, which has its roots in coastal folklore. The play is written by Will Jackson and Elinor Peregrin, and developed from scratch by the BYMT company over an intense two-week rehearsal period. The result is a charming, lighthearted tale of a small, coastal town - Blackwater Cove - which has prickly residents and a supernatural secret. 

Every seven years, when the tides and moon are in alignment, Blackwater Cove is visited by Selkies - magical seals, who throw off their coats to become young women. They walk on land for the first time and find out what life is like among the humans, before deciding if they will become seals again or stay in Blackwater Cove forever. 

The residents of Blackwater Cove have their own prejudices about ‘outsiders’, and tell tales about dangerous, shipwreck-causing Selkies. Over the course of the play, the two communities, who have grown up separately, above and below the water, are each invited to change their perspective.

The audience is guided through the play by Mysterious Mags (Millie Whale), an eccentric resident of the town, who draws the audience in with fourth-wall-breaking storytelling, and great comic timing. 

Will Jackson and Elinor Peregrin won BYMT’s New Music Theatre Award for 2025 - offering the pair the opportunity to have their work staged in a professional setting. The play is an evenly distributed ensemble piece, with every performer given the opportunity to shine. Will Jackson’s script is witty, and well balanced - he also directs, and makes the most of the Patrick Studio’s space. A case in point is a delightful, and very effective, shadow puppet sequence, which illustrates a local folktale. 

Elinor Peregrin’s music brings the seaside setting to life, influenced by folk music and shanties, and featuring swelling vocal moments reminiscent of the sea itself. A real highlight of the play is the lush, jammy harmony when the Selkie girls sing together in an ethereal and soulful number, as they realize their preconceived notions of life on land don’t quite match with reality. The song begins in a pitch-perfect duet between two of the Selkies, before the others add their voices to the mix. 

The play features a live, on-stage band, under the musical direction of Sarah Morrison. The folk style is completed by the addition of two young performers, Sonny Crefin and Eva Reud, on the guitar and violin. 

Once again, the talented young performers of British Youth Music Theatre are ready to wow their audiences, with a heartfelt, funny and timely tale, about welcoming strangers, and remaining curious. 

Four Stars

Sea Change was reviewed on Friday 28 August by Jessica Clixby at Birmingham Hippodrome’s Patrick Studio, where it shows until Sunday 30 August.