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The Savage

“There was a wild kid living in Burgess Woods. He had no famly and he had no pals and he didn’t know where he come from and he couldn’t talk. His wepons wer old kitchen nives and forks and an ax. He was savage. He was truly wild.”

Blue Bake’s at home with his mum and his little sister, Jess. He’s writing a story. Not all that stuff about wizards and happy ever after – a real story about blood and guts and trouble, because that’s what life’s really like. At least it is for Blue, since his Dad died, and Hopper the bully started knocking him about. But Blue’s story takes on a life of its own, weird and dangerous and wild. The savage that he creates on the page and in his dreams comes to life in the real world, and seems set on bringing chaos and revenge. Can Blue keep his creation under control? Can the savage even bring Blue and his family a kind of peace?

David Almond’s own adaptation of his acclaimed graphic novel created with Dave McKean and published in translation around the world.

This play was produced by Live Theatre, Newcastle upon Tyne in 2016, directed by Max Roberts.

‘David Almond’s story of a teenager encouraged to write about his troubled thoughts is a darkly compelling triumph. The Savage began life as a televised story and then became graphic novel with illustrations by Dave McKean. Now Almond has adapted it into a piece of visionary realism that may be its most powerful incarnation yet. Imagine if William Blake had been hired as a scriptwriter on the Geordie teen soap Byker Grove and you get the general idea. Max Roberts’s intense and compelling production gains great impact from stirring outbreaks of ritualistic movement choreographed by Lee Proud.’ Alfred Hickling, The Guardian

‘An important piece of regional theatre that could make its impact anywhere in the world.’ British Theatre Guide

‘This refreshingly unsentimental contemporary parable strikes a winning balance between realism and rich theatricality.’ The Times