The Early Bird
by Leo Butler
by Leo Butler
The Early Bird explores the devastating emotional turmoil of a couple grappling with the disappearance of their child through a series of haunting interrogations and memories.
About The Play
About The Play
★★★★ Four Stars and Critics’ Choice
The Independent On Sunday
“The electrifying London fringe premiere” (Kate Bassett, The Independent on Sunday) of a new play by George Devine award-winning playwright Leo Butler.
Every five minutes a child goes missing.
Debbie and Jack face the ultimate parental nightmare – the disappearance of their child – and find themselves trapped in a vicious cycle of interrogations, recriminations and unanswerable questions.
The Early Bird delves into the furthest reaches of the fractured minds of the traumatised as the grieving couple relive their last memories of their daughter.
The Early Bird is performed by real life husband and wife Catherine Cusack (NT, Old Vic, Shared Experience, Dublin’s Abbey and Gate Theatres) and Alex Palmer (Royal Court, Almeida, Traverse), and is Butler’s most experimential play to date. A team including designer takis (Stovepipe, NT/Bush/Hightide), lighting designer Paul Keogan (RSC, NT, Royal Court, Abbey Theatre Associate Artist) and composer Philip Stewart (Abbey Theatre, Project, Olympia) lead by director Donnacadh O’Briain bring this play to life in a highly original and daring staging.
Image: Missing Child by John Paul Thornton copyright 2000
Artist John Paul Thornton has painted hundreds of portraits of missing children as a way to honour them. His art may be viewed at www.johnpaulthornton.com