A new play by Steve Thompson which follows a new Prime Minister’s first 100 days in power, Feed the Beast is to have its première at Birmingham REP.
Said Thompson, “the Leveson Inquiry was a unique moment in British history: four Prime Ministers gave evidence. Two of them had been canonized by the media and two of them had been destroyed by it.
“Yet, for all four of them, the media had been a defining part of their story. Feed the Beast explores the relationship between 10 Downing Street and the press, and asks the critical questions: what sort of politicians do we want running this country and how do we judge them?”
Peter Rowe, artistic director of the New Wolsey Ipswich who directs Feed the Beast, added, “it’s rare to be offered the chance to direct a new play like Steve’s that talks about issues which are so of the moment. This sharp and sassy examination of the relationship between leading politicians and the press will take place just as we’re all deciding who to vote for in the General Election.
“In a witty, energetic and sometimes scabrous look behind the scenes at Prime Ministerial power, this fast and funny play asks do we get the politicians we deserve, the politicians the press demands or simply those who are left once the politicians with beliefs and principles have been hounded out of town.”
Steve Thompson’s debut play Damages played to sell-out audiences at the Bush Theatre in 2004. It won the Meyer Whitworth Award for best new play.
His second play Whipping It Up, which featured Richard Wilson and Robert Bathurst, premièred at the Bush Theatre and transferred to the West End before going on a UK tour.
Thompson has written episodes for all three series of the BAFTA-award winning BBC TV series Sherlock as well as for Silk, Doctor Who and Upstairs Downstairs.
The cast for Feed the Beast includes Kacey Ainsworth, Gerald Kyd, Amy Marston, Shaun Mason, Paul Moriarty, Aimee Powell, Badria Timimi and Tristram Wymark.
Design is by Libby Watson and lighting design by Simon Bond. Composer and sound designer is Tom Mills.
A co-production between Birmingham REP and the New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich, Feed the Beast runs in the Studio at the REP from Thursday 16 April until Saturday 2 May.