Over the past two years the enterprising and imaginative Brighton based charity Mankind has been establishing a reputation for presenting lively, provocative theatre at the Brighton Fringe: Groomed (2016), Blooming and Between You and Me (2017). This year the emphasis, despite the title of Adrian Marks’ play, moves far from Hobbits, into the hidden hero inside all of us – however ordinary we may feel.
Meet Kevin Brook, self-confessed fanatic of all things ‘Lord of the Rings’. On the evening before Gandalf is to sign copies of the brand new Movie Companion to ‘The Two Towers’, Kevin is first in the queue outside the bookshop, eagerly waiting.
But in the deep of the night the thrilling fantasy characters soon give way to the all too real people in his own memory – friends who don’t understand him, family who never had time for him.
What’s the real reason for his obsession with the kindly wizard? A disturbing truth is about to be revealed, and with it the chance for Kevin to find the way clear to a more optimistic future….. Will he seize the opportunity? Can we, watching, support him?
Adrian Marks’ wry and sensitive writing is matched by the gentle quirkiness of Chris Neville-Smith’s stage presence….but is this a disguise for something infinitely more complex? Are our ideas of being male and heroic about to be challenged?
“Dark as Hell” (Fringe Guru)
“A nuanced, sympathetic performance of a lost soul that really tugs at the heart strings” (Broadway Baby)
Waiting for Gandalf will be at Sweet Werks, (Venue 18), 14 – 20 May at 6pm [75mins including optional after show Q&A].
Tickets: £8.00 / £6.00
For more details, visit: mkcharity.org/wfg
