Interview: NEAL FOSTER on Gangsta Granny, Horrible Histories & Birmingham Stage Company

Director of Birmingham Stage Company Neal Foster has created a vast amount of high quality productions over the last 30 years, including stage adaptations of David Walliams’ Gangsta Granny and the Horrible Histories series. We spoke to Neal about BSC’s continuing success and his role in the company.

You created Birmingham Stage Company when you were 19. Did you ever imagine it would become the success it has?

I think everyone who sets up a company has a vision of success, but I couldn’t have imagined what opportunities it would give me and so many others. To perform in theatres around the world, like the Sydney Opera House, the New Victory Theatre on Broadway and even places like Syria and India. To meet so many amazing people. And the chance to entertain audiences of millions in such fantastic productions.

As well as being the Director of BSC, you also have an established acting career. How do you manage to juggle the two roles?

It’s hard, but the different types of stimulation you get from running a company and then acting in a show is invigorating. A lot of actors complain about the lack of control they have in the projects in which their involved and so it’s thrilling to be able to help shape all aspects of a production. I find myself compartmentalising my mind so I can put my concentration where it’s needed.

How did the pandemic affect you, both personally and professionally?

I had the advantage of reading so much history that I knew this was yet another very large bump in the road of humanity’s journey. I was also determined to find a way to continue to create theatre. Almost immediately we can began staging shows in car parks, which worked brilliantly. My real concern was for all the young people just starting out in their careers, for whom the pandemic was such a hard blow, but we seem to be heading towards better times.

How did you approach adapting the much loved Gangsta Granny by David Walliams?

David is a performer as much as a writer, so he writes in a very theatrical way. He’s also a master of structure, so the stories always develop beautifully. I tend to write very instinctively in response to what David has created, so I let my imagination let rip to develop his written word into a theatrical extravaganza. David enjoys the fact we translate his stories into theatre without shying away from the more challenging things to stage, like when Ben and Granny swim across the Thames or when he introduces elephants into the action! I really enjoyed fully visualising his story.

You are taking Horrible Christmas out on the road again as part of Car Park Panto. Do you feel the dynamic is different for drive-in shows?

It’s totally different. You get very little feedback from the audience because you literally can’t hear anything, except when they’re beeping their car horns! So it becomes a generous act of giving your performance out to the audience without expecting to hear anything in return. The only way we truly know what they’re thinking is when we see the Facebook comments after the show and read how much they’ve enjoyed it!

There have been many different Horrible Histories shows. Do you have a favourite?

Over the course of 17 years, we’ve staged 18 different HH shows but I think I’ve most enjoyed creating the Barmy Britain shows which have performed in the West End for the last decade. It’s become the longest running children’s show in West End history.

What has been the highlight of your career thus far?

To be truthful, there’s honestly been a highlight every single year of our thirty year history, so it would be hard to single out just one. But playing Skellig (by David Almond) had an enormous impact on me – I was going through a crisis at the time and it was almost life saving.

In your eyes, what makes a great family show?

A show that genuinely entertains the whole family. It’s one of the main aims of all our productions – to truly entertain a five year old and a ninety-five year old. I’ve always retained a very child-like sensibility about the world which makes it easier for me to tell stories that can capture the attention of adults and children at the same time. There’s almost nothing too sophisticated for children to deal with – it’s just a question of how you approach it.

For a list of BSC shows and to book tickets, please click here.