Interview: Playwright Lewis Hetherington

We had a chat with Lewis Hetherington, writer of our upcoming Christmas show Sleeping Beauty. Lewis is celebrating his 10 year anniversary of Christmas shows with Platform and tells us why the show will bring some joy, warmth and magic this festive season…

Sleeping Beauty is set to open at Platform on Tue 6 December (running until Fri 23). Tickets are on sale now with prices starting from £5 per ticket. Find more information and buy your tickets here.

How have things been with you and what else have you been working on recently?

I am good, it's been amazing over the last few months to have live performance back! I've really enjoyed going to see plays, gigs and more.

I've just had a show called Rocket Post! on tour all over Scotland, including performing at Platform. It was a really fun and joyful show based on a true story about a series of experiment sending letters in rockets. Most of the rockets blew up! 

How long have you been working with Platform on our Christmas offering? 

This is my SEVENTH show at Platform. They are.... Goldilocks, Red Riding Hood, Three Little Pigs, Puss in Boots, Rapunzel, Mother Goose fae Easterhoose and now Sleeping Beauty. My first was 2012 - this is my ten year anniversary!

Tell us about Sleeping Beauty at Platform

I always enjoy taking a story people know well, and then bringing it to life in a whole new way. Quite early on I thought it'd be funny to set it in a mattress shop, in a local shopping centre. 

It's very silly but I like the fact it's all about falling asleep and it's based in a mattress shop. I also didn't want to have a regular kind of 'King' so that let me to think that Beauty's dad could be 'The King Of Low Prices', and style himself on Elvis to charm the customers and entertain his daughter.

So it’s a very different take on the original Sleeping Beauty…

I can guarantee this will be unlike any Sleeping Beauty you have seen before. I don't want to give anything away... but my first thought was Beauty is this great dynamic young character, but often she spends the whole show asleep, and then some random prince turns up. 

I didn't want that so I found a whole new way to tell the story - you'll have to come see it to find out what happens.

Is there a good dose of East End humour within the show? 

Definitely. I love the audiences at Platform and they have really taught me what is funny! Having made Christmas shows in Easterhouse for ten years, and had great feedback and responses from the audience, I've created a finely tuned script filled of everything I've learned about fun from them!

Why should people come and see it?

People should come because they will have a good time! We have a brilliant cast, the set is great, and the whole show is full of jokes and surprises, and a really gripping new version of a well-loved story. It'll make you feel full of festive joy and bring a bit of warmth and magic into this crazy old world.  

What is top of your list from Santa this year?

Good question! Some slippers - I know that's very boring but I want snuggly feet. 

Sleeping Beauty is on at Platform from Tue 6 – Fri 23 Dec – buy your tickets here.

[Elvis images: Iain McLean Photography]