Preview: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night

NATIONAL THEATRE’S AWARD-WINNING PRODUCTION OF THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME TO MAKE NOTTINGHAM DEBUT AT THEATRE ROYAL

The National Theatre’s multi award-winning production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is making its Nottinghamshire debut at the Theatre Royal from Tuesday 31 March th to Saturday 11 April 2015 as part of a nationwide tour.

Simon Stephens’ adaptation of Mark Haddon’s best-selling novel, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time received seven Olivier Awards in 2013, including Best New Play, Best Director, Best Lighting Design and Best Sound Design. As well as being on this major tour, the show is concurrently running at the Gielgud Theatre in London and on Broadway.

Playwright Simon Stephens said about adapting Haddon’s novel for the stage:

‘ The adaptation was a really joyful experience. I knew two things in adapting the play. I knew that they key to it was the relationship between Christopher and his teacher. Although it’s not that central in the novel, what struck me was that everybody in life has a favourite teacher. Even people who hated school, even people who found school a miserable experience, had one teacher who they loved more than others and thought got them in a way that other teachers didn’t. I knew that if I could get that relationship right, then we could create an evening in the theatre that people could recognize themselves in. The other thing that I knew was that Marianne Elliott had to direct it. I think she’s a visionary director, I think she’s a director of extraordinary imagination, but she’s also a very democratic director. This can’t be a piece of theatre that alienates people. It has to be a piece of theatre that you can come to if you’re 10 years old or if you’re 90 years old. It needs to appeal to people that have very high art taste in theatre, but also it’s got to be a family night out, and I thought that Marianne could release that really beautifully and really perfectly. Everybody working on it, the entire creative team, were united in wanting to tell Christopher’s story as honestly and properly as possible.’

‘All I ever wanted to do was to make Mark Haddon happy. He came to see rehearsals and the previews and the show at the National and in the West End and Broadway and he fell back in love with Curious Incident all over again. That makes me as proud as anything.’

Author Mark Haddon himself added:

‘When I wrote Curious Incident I was absolutely convinced that it couldn’t be adapted for film or stage. The novel is one person’s very insulated and sometimes profoundly mistaken view of the world. We’re stuck inside Christopher’s head from cover to cover. We see the world the way he sees the world. And there’s the problem. Or so it seemed to me. Theatre is radically third person. You can infer what people are thinking but you can do so only from what they say and what they do. I simply couldn’t imagine how Christopher’s story could be told with any integrity in this way. Simon’s genius was to recognise that I was completely and utterly wrong.’

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is directed by Marianne Elliott, who co-directed the National Theatre’s record-breaking production of War Horse. The production is designed by Bunny Christie, with lighting by Paule Constable, video design by Finn Ross, movement by Scott Graham and Steven Hoggett for Frantic Assembly, music by Adrian Sutton and sound by Ian Dickinson for Autograph.

The show tell story of Christopher Boone, who is fifteen years old. He stands besides Mrs Shears’ dead dog, which has been speared with a garden fork, it is seven minutes after midnight and Christopher is under suspicion. He records each fact in a book he is writing to solve the mystery of who murdered Wellington. He has an extraordinary brain, and is exceptional at maths while ill-equipped to interpret everyday life. He has never ventured alone beyond the end of his road, he detests being touched and distrusts strangers. But his detective work, forbidden by his father, takes him on a frightening journey that upturns his world.

The central role of Christopher is played by Joshua Jenkins with Geraldine Alexander as his teacher Siobhan, Roberta Kerr as Mrs Alexander, Stuart Laing as his father Ed, Gina Isaacs as Judy and Clare Perkins as Mrs Shears. The cast is completed by Chris Ashby (alternate Christopher), Emmanuella Cole (Punk Girl), Edward Grace (Mr Thompson), Lucas Hare (Roger Shears), John McAndrew (Reverend Peters) with Kieran Garland, Ann Marcuson, Paul Sockett and Jessica Williams in the ensemble.

Swansea born Joshua Jenkins makes his National Theatre debut as Christopher. His previous theatre credits include: Dunsinane for the Royal Shakespeare Company and National Theatre of Scotland.

Geraldine Alexander’s TV work includes: Father Brown, Shetland, and the original series of Taggart. Her recent theatre work includes Eleanor of Aquitaine in Holy Warriors at the Globe Theatre.

Gina Isaac recently played Brenda in Saturday Night and Sunday Morning, Top Girls and Absent Friends at the Mercury Theatre, Colchester, Sellotape Sisters at the Diorama Theatre, at Co and Sarah in Ricky Gervais’ Derek.

Stuart Laing’s stage credits include: Seasons Greetings (Liverpool Playhouse) and Streetcar Named Desire (Theatr Clwyd) and Indian Country (Script Cymru Traverse). TV and film: How TV Ruined my Life, Rob Minter in EastEnders and Spooks.

Roberta Kerr is well known to TV viewers for her role as Wendy Crozier, Ken Barlow’s love interest in Coronation Street in 1990, who made a return to the role in 2012. Other TV work includes Downtown Abbey, Silk and Brookside.

Clare Perkins recently played Ava in EastEnders, Her most recently theatre was at th eTricycle Theatre in London in The House that will not Stand. On TV, , Jocelyn in Run for Channel 4 and Simone in Holby City. On film she played Linda in Mike Leigh’s Secrets and Lies and Jill in Ken Loach’s Ladybird Ladybird.

Chris Ashby’s recent TV credits include New Tricks and Skins, and on stage: Tom’s Midnight Garden (Birmingham Stage Company), The Conquest of the South Pole (Arcola and Rose Theatre) and Seconds (The Pleasance).

Emmanuella Cole appeared in Danton’s Death for the National Theatre, the title role in Amanda at the Young Vic, Capitalism in Crisis (Young Vic) and Church Font Used as Wash Basin (Uncut/Young Vic).

Edward Grace’s credits include: Enduring Song (Southwark Playhouse), Blue/Orange and The Importance of Being Earnest for Contexture Theatre, Our Boys (Duchess Theatre) and Dirty Money on film.

Lucas Hare appeares in the current series of Broadchurch. Other TV and film work includes Law and Order UK, EastEnders and Die Another Day. For the National Theatre: Children of the Sun, Scenes from an Excecution .The Last of the Haussmans.and Seasons Greetings (directed by Marianne Elliott).

John McAndrew recently played Jim Hacker in a tour of Yes, Prime Minister, Ivanov in Fortunes Fool at The Old Vic and Glengarry Glen Ross at the Library Theatre, Manchester. His TV and film credits include: The Fear and Five Daughters.

Kieran Garland’s stage credits include Macbeth (Rift), Up in Smoke (The Company) and Dahling you were Marvellous (Stephen Berkoff).

Salford born Ann Marcuson’s stage work includes: The Lottery (Bury Court Opera), Daisy Pulls it Off (The Gatehouse) and Bloodhound (Northern Stage).

Paul Sockett’s recent stage work includes: Baggage at the Roundhouse, Hero (Tristran Bates Theatre) and Telling Lives (Manchester Tour). TV and film: The Best Little Whorehouse in Rochdale, and Banana on E4.

Jessica Williams trained at the London Contemporary Dance school and has worked for Frantic Assembly, co-directed for the National Youth Theatre of Wales and was assistant movement director for the National Theatre of Wales. Jessica also teaches at the Oxford School of Drama..

Marianne Elliott is an Associate Director of the National Theatre where her productions have included: War Horse (co-directed with Tom Morris), The Light Princess, Port, Season’s Greetings, All’s Well that Ends Well, Harper Regan, Saint Joan (Olivier Award for Best Revival, South Bank Show Award for Theatre), and Pillars of the Community (Evening Standard Award for Best Director). Marianne was consultant director on The Elephantom for the National Theatre and also recently directed Sweet Bird of Youth for the Old Vic with Kim Cattrall.

Mark Haddon’s novel The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time was published in 2003. It was the winner of more than 17 literary awards, including prizes in Japan, Holland and Italy as well as the Whitbread Book of the Year Award in the UK in 2004, and was translated into 44 languages. A Spot of Bother, published in 2006, was also an international bestseller. As well as writing fiction, Mark Haddon’s first work for the theatre, Polar Bears, was produced by the Donmar Warehouse in 2010. He has written 15 books for children, published a first collection of poetry in 2005 and is an illustrator and award-winning screenwriter. The Red House, Mark Haddon’s new novel was recently published by Vintage in paperback.

Simon Stephens’ play Birdland recently ran at the Royal Court Theatre with Andrew Scott in the central role. Blindsided premiered at the Royal Exchange in Manchester earlier this year. His play Port (originally produced at the Royal Exchange and also directed by Marianne Elliott) was revived at the National Theatre’s Lyttelton Theatre last year. His other plays for the National are Harper Regan and On the Shore of the Wide World (co-production with Royal Exchange, Manchester: Olivier Award for Best New Play). His many other plays include Three Kingdoms, Wastwater, Punk Rock, Seawall, Pornography, Country Music, Christmas and Herons; A Thousand Stars Explode in the Sky (co-written with Robert Holman and David Eldridge); an adaptation of Jon Fosse’s I Am the Wind and Motortown. His version of A Doll’s House for the Young Vic transferred to the West End and then New York in 2014. Simon is an Associate at the Lyric, Hammersmith.

Tickets now available here from £15.50.