Q&A with Joe McFadden who plays Ed in The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time
Alongside our co-producers Melting Pot, we’re bringing a thrilling and innovative new production of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, inspired by the multi-million-selling acclaimed novel from Mark Haddon and adapted by Simon Stephens, to our The House stage before it sets off on a UK tour!
In our adaptation of this century’s most popular murder mystery, the role of Chris Boone will be played by Alex Keenan and alternated by Imi Price. Making both Keenan and Price the first women to portray Chris Boone brings a fresh perspective to one of contemporary theatre’s most iconic characters while still honouring the heart of the original story.
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, has been a fan of the book from 2003 and when he heard about this new production he was excited to be part of it, appearing alongside a cast that includes Charlie Brooks as Chris’s mum, Judy.
Read more about what drew him to this complex father figure and his excitement about making his Rep Debut, in the full Q&A interview with Marianka Swain below:
Photography by Danny With A Camera
Joe McFadden (Ed)
When did you first encounter The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time?
Joe McFadden: I read the book back in 2003, and like most of the rest of the UK, I loved it. I reread it recently and was blown away again. It gives you such brilliant insight into Christopher’s inner life, his imagination, his world. That’s why it was so groundbreaking: really putting you into the mind of a neurodivergent person. It illuminated that experience.
I saw it in the West End and thought it so inventive. Simon Stephens did such a brilliant job of adapting it, keeping the best bits of the book but also making sure it came alive and really worked as a piece of theatre. When I heard they were doing it again, but with new direction, design, movement, music, that really excited me. 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 [Haddon]’s amazing novel.
Tell us about your character Ed and your way into him
Joe: Brilliantly, Simon 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.
What do you think drives Ed?
Joe: He strikes me as quite a private man, quite a serious man. It says in the play that he’s more patient than Judy – he gets on with things and doesn’t let anything affect him. That’s a strength but also a weakness. It means he can’t communicate, can’t reach out for help. He bottles up all his worries. He’s a pressure cooker, and now and then he’ll blow.
That feels like an honest depiction of a parent who means well, but struggles with the emotional side of things. Ed’s a grafter: he’s a hard-working plumber; he’s used to getting his head down. That’s at the heart of who he is. I remember being shocked when I first saw the moment where he lashes out. Now that I’m a bit older, I understand his frustrations, the pressure he’s under to survive and to protect this vulnerable child.
Joe McFadden (Ed) & Alex Keenan (Chris Boone)
How does the representation of a neurodivergent character land differently now?
Joe: In some ways we’ve moved on a lot, and we do know more about neurodivergence, but there’s still a long way to go. This is a story that still needs to be told. Chris has this amazing brain – she’s so adept at these complex mathematical problems. Bringing that to life is exciting: expressing on stage how her mind works. It’s an effective way to tell stories, through theatre, because it’s all happening right in front of you.
How does making Chris a female character change the production?
Joe: There aren’t as many stories about neurodivergence told from the female perspective. Lots of girls are being underdiagnosed, or diagnosed later in life, because they’re better at masking their symptoms. It felt important that we tell the story from the female point of view. In the way that lots of neurodiverse teenage boys came and saw the show last time, and felt their story was being told, hopefully teenage girls will feel that way now.
Does it also change your character’s relationship with her child?
Joe: Yes, it definitely has repercussions: Ed is now a single dad with a daughter instead. I was interested in what that would do to their relationship. I think that while he was already protective, now it’s a female character he’s even more protective of her. It doesn’t fundamentally change the story, but it raises the stakes, and it changes the family dynamic. Judy leaving her daughter feels like a bigger thing. It’s a subtle shift that audiences who saw the show before will recognise and feel like it’s a fresh experience.
Joe McFadden (Ed) and Charlie Brooks (Judy)
Can you tell us about the new staging?
Joe: It’s so inventive – our director, Ned [Bennett]’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. Eleanor [Bull] has done an incredible job with the design as well. It’s a real treat for the senses.
Why are you excited to tour with the production?
Joe: I love touring. I did a tour of The Shawshank Redemption last year and played some amazing venues, and now I get to go back to lots of them. I’m excited. We’re opening in Birmingham, which is one of my favourite cities – audiences there are up for having a good time. The wonderful thing about touring is it informs and changes the play because the audiences have different personalities in different parts of the country.
Chris Boone is gifted with a brilliant mind for numbers but unsettled by the unpredictability of people and everyday life. When a neighbour’s dog is discovered killed, Chris comes under suspicion. Determined to prove their innocence, Chris becomes both detective and suspect, drawn into a mystery that grows darker and more complex with every clue uncovered.
What begins as the search for a culprit soon reveals secrets closer to home, forcing Chris to confront truths that will test their courage, family, and understanding of trust, independence, and the wider world.
Inventive, gripping, and moving, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time will open here at The Rep from Sat 5 – Sat 19 Sep, ahead of a major UK tour and is adapted from Mark Haddon’s multi-million-selling novel by acclaimed Playwright Simon Stephens and will be directed by Ned Bennett.
Book Now
Read Charlie Brook‘s Q&A interview here