With two weeks to go till opening night and ticket sales moving along nicely, I decided to step back and have a think about the play and what initially inspired me to put it on.

It all began in July 2011…

I was frantically searching for a monologue to perform as part of my graduating showcase at drama school. After scouring libraries and reading countless number of plays I came across a monologue written by a British writer Chris Chibnall. I had never heard of him but I soon found out that after writing this play he went on to carve out his career writing for Doctor Who and Torchwood. The character speaking the monologue was Tony and without giving too much away, it was touching, humorous, weird and interesting. I was so amazed that I had found this monologue and yet knew nothing about the play it came from, Kiss Me Like You Mean It. What I loved most about the monologue was that I felt  the character was speaking my thoughts – that  I was Tony. And nearly two years later, after reading and rehearsing the play over and over, I still see  much of Tony in myself.

It wasn’t just about Tony; I  loved the other characters too. Ruth, Edie and Don are  people we can relate to. Tony and Ruth resonate strongly with me. They’re in their late twenties, stuck in a rut, trying desperately to escape their circumstances and both want to love and be loved. How many of us feel that way? And Don and Edie, the elderly couple who live upstairs, fight and love like any ordinary couple who’ve been married for over 40 years.

While this play is about love it’s also about making the most out of every opportunity that life presents you.

As Don says to Tony, “You lot, you think you can get everything if you’ve got a credit card and a remote control. Anything trickier than that and you start getting panicked. So you miss your pivotal moments…the time to grasp life by the collar and say you’re flamin’ coming with me!”

This really resonated with me, grasping life by the collar, or as I prefer, grabbing life by the balls! This is why I had to put this play on. This is what I hope our audience will take away.

So for those of you  planning to  see the show I encourage you to book your tickets sooner rather than later. Follow the link on our homepage www.marcupproductions.com.

For those who adore love as much as I do, we’re offering a special package on Valentines Day, which includes bubbles, chocolates and some pre-show music to get you in the mood for love.

See you at the show!

Rob x