A FORMER local schoolgirl is returning to Bridport to perform her first one-woman show.

Tessa Bide’s new show, The Tap Dancing Mermaid, is set to delight audiences young and old with its mixture of storytelling, live music, puppets and tap-dance.

The original production tells the story of a girl who creeps away from her disapproving aunt at night to dance on a boardwalk by the sea.

One moonlit night she meets a mysterious swimming boy who changes her life forever.

Growing up in Bridport and attending Sir John Colfox School and Thomas Hardye Sixth Form, where she studied drama and performing arts, Tessa has performed at the town’s flagship venue several times since the age of 11.

Her passion for dance grew after joining the Les Bois Dance School at the age of ten and later Bridport Youth Dance where her tap dancing skills were honed by teacher Nikki Northover.

She went on to work with Stuff and Nonsense Theatre Company, based at The Lyric Theatre, and worked as co-manager while developing her performing and producing skills. She also led a fundraising campaign that raised more than £11,000 for essential repairs to be made to the theatre.

Tessa performed a nationwide tour of Niki McCretton’s one-woman show ‘Muttnick: First Dog in Space’ to multiple sell-out audiences up and down the country, with one reviewer branding her “a truly amazing one woman power house”.

Calling herself ‘a real Bridport gal,’ Tessa hopes her show will inspire local youngsters to follow in her footsteps.

“I am so excited to be performing at Bridport Arts Centre with my own show. I have been coming to the inspiring venue ever since ‘Summer Thing 1996’ and to be performing my own one-woman show is a huge achievement,” said Tessa.

“I’m also looking forward to showing Bridport’s creative young people that they can accomplish anything, without having to train at an expensive drama school or university.

“The production showcases other Bridport talents such as Matt Huxley, another former Colfox student who composed the show’s original and beautiful score.”

Performances will be at Bridport Arts Centre at 11am and 2pm on Wednesday, October 2 and October 4, and at 11am on Saturday, October 5. Tickets are £10 for adults and £6 for children over three.