When Loz, Chichester Festival Theatre’s Head of Wardrobe, joined the bunch, one introduction led to another, then another.
What followed was a wonderful reminder of how POWER grows. What started as a single banana became a bunch, and this story has become part of Chichester Festival Theatre and beyond.
When Loz was preparing to leave after ten years, Kathy Bourne, Executive Director of Chichester Festival Theatre, knew exactly how she’d want to celebrate: with POWER.
Loz’s final run on the sewing machine at CFT produced custom pedal covers for the POWER bikes, complete with banana-yellow thread, handmade by the legend who had become part of the POWER community herself.
They remain a reminder of how this story began and how far it has grown.
That’s the thing about POWER. It grows one banana at a time, simply by one person inviting another person into something uniquely bananas they love.
Today, members of the Chichester Festival Theatre team regularly join the community anchor, POWER on the Beach: wardrobe, props, wigs and make-up, lighting and more. Kathy is a much-loved regular too, introducing friends and family to the bunch.
POWER on the Beach has become a recommended experience for visiting productions. Writers, cast, crew and stage managers discover it while they’re in Chichester, and often invite their families along too.
Thank you so so much for today, and always. Still letting the whole day sink in, and it’s gonna take a while, but wow, so much love.
Loz
One of the things I’m most proud of is seeing just how many different people find a home in POWER. Different ages, backgrounds, professions and stories finding connection in the same space.
One memory I’ll cherish came during a Bank Holiday weekend when biblical rain made an outdoor POWER experience impossible. Rather than cancelling, Chichester Festival Theatre opened the doors of their VIP Pavilion for the bunch. Outside, the rain poured as the parkrun community gathered in the park.
It felt like an unexpected coming together of three communities with a shared purpose: Chichester Festival Theatre, parkrun and POWER.
Along the way, I’ve also had the privilege of celebrating special moments with the people behind all of this; milestone birthdays and family memories.
It’s a reminder that some of the most meaningful partnerships don’t begin with a proposal or a plan.
They begin with one person saying:
“You’ve got to try this.”
And then another.
And another.
That’s how Loz found POWER. It’s how Kathy found POWER. It’s how theatre teams, visiting productions, friends and families continue to find POWER.
And that’s how a single banana became a bunch.
Start your own POWER story …
What starts as one banana often becomes a bunch.
Whether you’re planning a team event, celebration, away day or community experience, I’d love to hear your ideas.
Let’s chat