We sat down for an exclusive interview with Tom England from the Wardrobe Ensemble bringing Mog’s Christmas to Northampton this Christmas season.
This show runs from 6-31st December at Royal and Derngate Theatre, Northampton – Tickets here
Why do you think Mog’s combination of everyday insecurity and accidental bravery continues to resonate so strongly across generations?
I think Mog continues to appeal to audiences of all ages for a number of reasons. Whether you personally identify with Mog’s clumsiness and forgetfulness, or whether her lovable foolishness reminds you of your own household pet, it’s difficult not to feel great warmth for a central character that doesn’t seek out attention or adulation but rather stumbles and bumbles through their simple life.
On top of that, in all of Mog’s adventures the prevailing message is that, no matter what happens, everything will be alright in the end. How can you not love that?
How do you translate Mog’s gentle, book-based humour and emotion into something that works theatrically, live, and in the moment?
In the initial devising process for the show, we spoke in great detail about the feeling you get as a child when you turn the page in a book for the first time to discover new images and adventures awaiting you. We were super conscious of bringing that feeling to the stage, evoking the sense of pages turning and new images presenting themselves effortlessly. In Mog’s Christmas we have tried to bring the beautiful, hand drawn images in the books to life, as well as breathe something new into the story with beautiful music, joyful singing, humorous staging and eye-catching costumes.
What themes in Mog’s Christmas felt particularly relevant or meaningful to highlight for today’s families?
What we love so much about Mog’s Christmas is that Judith Kerr chose to place connection and togetherness at the heart of the story. What we found was that, for her, Christmas was clearly about bringing the whole, extended family together rather than anything more superficial. That’s the message we really want to land with families and those coming to the theatre this Christmas. Above all else, Christmas is a time for connection, togetherness and community.
What are the biggest creative challenges in staging such an iconic and beloved character while keeping her recognisably ‘Mog’ for long-time fans?
It might sound a bit trite to say so, but we genuinely never saw the chance to stage Mog in terms of the challenges it presented. As a company, it has always felt like an amazing honour and opportunity to bring such a beloved character to life!
Having said that, there is undoubtedly a challenge in bringing a fictional cat to life on stage with only human actors (particularly given that Judith was so clear that she never wanted Mog to be a puppet), but we are so fortunate that Faye, our brilliant actor performing as Mog, does such a great job of bringing Mog to life. As a result, I have no doubt that children and adults alike will connect not only to Mog, but to the story as a whole, in the same way that they do when reading the books.