Director’s Comments
Wagstaffe is an antihero. He’s bad, he’s rude and he’s ungrateful, just as I feel like being for at least some of the time. I’m sure we all do sometimes. It’s a dark and naughty take on the folk tale; it looks at family life and takes a sideways swipe at world politics. Making theatre should be instinctive and immediate coming from the surprises created in the rehearsal space. I am always hesitant to analyse or get too psychological about shows, but Wagstaffe feels like a modern parable. But more than any of this Wagstaffe is a show for village hall audiences. It might shock you, it might move you and it will certainly make you laugh using a mixture of Handel’s Messiah and great rock classics like Led Zeppelin’s ‘Stairway to Heaven’ and Meat Loafs ‘Bat out of Hell’.
Mike Shepherd
