‘A real treat for the senses’: Joe McFadden on new Curious Incident production
As The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time comes to Leicester in a new production, one of its stars talks about his love for the story – and why it resonates with so many people
It’s one of the most acclaimed plays of the century – and now a new production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time is coming to Leicester.
Inspired by the multi-million-selling novel by Mark Haddon, the story which combines a crime with family drama and an insightful portrait of neurodivergence. It’s adapted by Olivier and Tony Award-winning playwright Simon Stephens and helmed by visionary director Ned Bennett.
This new staging of the show, which originally premiered at the National Theatre in 2012, also sees the first-ever female casting of the neurodivergent teenage protagonist, now named Chris Boone, bringing a fresh perspective.
The tour is also led by two audience favourites as Chris’s parents. Charlie Brooks, best known for playing Janine Butcher on EastEnders, is Judy. Joe McFadden, known for TV dramas like The Crow Road, plays such as 2:22 A Ghost Story and for winning Strictly Come Dancing in 2017, plays Ed. Judy is absent from Chris’s life when the story begins, while Ed is struggling as, essentially, a single dad.
Ahead of the tour, Joe spoke about what audiences can expect from the show.
He said: ”I think for people who loved the book and the last production, they’ll love it again but find it’s a real reinterpretation and reimagining of Simon’s script and Mark’s amazing novel.
“It’s so inventive – Ned’s producing these amazing devices to express the story, and [movement director] Jenni [Jackson] is creating this physical language I’ve never really seen before. I can’t remember the last time I was so excited about putting on a show and seeing what people think. It’s a real treat for the senses.”
Joe also believes his character is relatable to many parents.
He said: “Simon [Stephens] came in to talk to us in our first week of rehearsals. My big question for him was: how do you play these characters sympathetically? They aren’t always fantastic parents; they make some big mistakes in the course of the story. He said, “What parent is perfect all the time?”, which I think we can all relate to. Ed is up against it. He’s a single father; he’s trying. He works full time, trying to put food on the table and look after the house, and parent this quite challenging child. You can understand why he has difficulties, and hopefully we don’t judge him too harshly. I remember thinking “What would I have done in that situation?” There’s not an easy answer.”
The play runs at the Curve from Tuesday October 20 to Saturday October 24. Visit curveonline.co.uk or call 0116 242 3595 to book.