A brand new theatre play aims to become a full production: In conversation with the creators of ‘Family First’.
‘Family First’ is a brand new play, written by recent graduates of Leeds Conservatoire, Tyler Pickles and Danté Thomas. The two creatives have collaborated on an exciting project and produced what they describe as ‘a story of family, tradition and the stories that make us’.
Eager to allow platforms for graduate, working-class and self-represented actors, the pair showcased a rehearsed reading of ‘Family First’ back in September and have since created a GoFundMe page to help get the performance on it’s feet. Donating to their fundraiser will not only help to bring theatre to a working-class audience, but will also allow the writers, organisers and performers to be paid fairly for their work. If you are able to support in any way at all, the link to share and donate at is:
Who are Tyler Pickles and Danté Thomas?
Tyler Pickles is a 22 year old Actor, mover and writer born and raised in Leeds. After graduating from Leeds Conservatoire last year, Tyler has been working with companies such as Duck Soup Productions, Fallen Angels Dance Theatre and Bloomin’ Buds, as well as working with Emmy award winners and actors from shows such as: Downton Abbey, This is England and Doctor Who.
Danté Thomas is a 24-year-old actor and writer from London who also graduated from Leeds conservatoire, alongside Tyler. For Dante, everything begun with him performing poetry and dancing in London but he soon fell in love with the creative potential that’s growing in the north, which inspired him to set his roots here.
We had a chat with the creative duo about the characters, storyline, aims, goals and future of their project Family First, here’s what they had to say…!
What made you want to start ‘Family First’?
There were many motivations for starting this project, but the main reason was that we were creatively frustrated after a fallout during an assessment in drama school. We needed something else to put our mind towards, so, with our friend practicing Ballet in the corner of the studio, we set up two chairs and a table and started writing. From there, we cycled through a bunch of ideas but only one core idea remained from that time, that the piece would be set in a bar. We loved the idea so much that it was actually named ‘The Bar’ up until this year.
Since then, we’ve found a motivation to get this play in front of working-class audiences, as that’s exactly what the piece is about, a northern working-class family that’s reflective of the 21st Century working-class experience. We want to make the play as accessible to working-class audiences as possible, bringing the play to local pubs, community centres and parish halls, with the aim to make tickets as cheap as possible to accommodate for everyone.
What is your aim with this project? Do you want to get it running as a full show? How do you plan to do this?
We have 3 core objectives for Family First:
1.) Bring theatre to local communities
2.) Tell stories that reflect working-class communities
3.) Provide work for recent graduates and unrepresented talent
So far, we feel we’re in a very good place to achieve these objectives. We successfully managed to reach them during our Rehearsed Reading, where we had attendance from Leeds Playhouse, Red Ladder Theatre Company, Slung Low, as well as writers from a Channel 4 series. We were incredibly lucky with the ensemble we had who made it possible for us to achieve this.
Of course we’d like to get this up and running as a full show, and we intend to do this in September 2025. The dates are yet to be publicly announced at the time of this interview, alongside some other exciting news. Since the rehearsed reading we’ve been getting our heads around the funding system, sourcing information from everywhere we can to give ourselves the best chances. We also have a GoFundMe page where folks can donate to help us with this:
Without giving away too much, what is Family First about and what should be expected?
Family First follows a Yorkshire family with strong ties to their Irish routes, having run their family establishment, ‘Balor Bar’, for generations. The two parents, Malachy and Lizzie, have every intention of their three children taking on the bar one day, but not everybody is onboard. Through songs, dance and stories of old, we tell the story of the Merrows protecting the roots they hold so close to their heart.
Throughout writing this piece, a strong topic of conversation has been tradition; at what cost should we aim to keep tradition alive and what issues does tradition cause within a family? What if we want to break away from these traditions? Each member of the Merrow Family have their own individual journeys where they find their own conclusions to these questions.
The audience should expect a whole host of fun, drawing away from the usually gritty nature of northern performances and speaking to the true nature of God’s own country.
Who is your favourite character and why? If somebody famous were to play them, who would it be and why?
Tyler:
Easily Keira. She is the most mischievous of the bunch and always has a comeback or something witty to say, making her such a joy to write. She indiscriminately teases each family member. In terms of famous people…I haven’t thought that far, as we’ve met an actor that we’re really keen to play the role, like, they just ARE Keira and we’re really hoping they’ll be able to join us for the tour, so sorry to disappoint but I have not thought that far at all!
Danté:
Whilst Keira is, without a doubt, the most fun, I feel like my favourite character has to be Malachy. I mean all that energy has to come from somewhere right? He definitely is a character that you’d have a pint with, which turns to 2, then 3, then turns to you stumbling out of the pub, learning life lessons as well as his entire life story. I like fallible characters that are full of learned wisdom.
As for famous people? That’s an impossible one. Off the cuff, I’d say David tenant, especially now. A massively versatile actor whose interviews seem so pure and fulfilling but no matter what he does, it always feels like there’s a mischievous glint in his eye.
What inspired Family First?
We were really inspired by a game called ‘What remains of Edith Finch’, which follows a family that seems to have no luck and a series of tragic deaths. What struck us was the way in which it tells these stories; each story has it’s own entirely unique method. We tried to reflect this by allowing each character to tell their own story in a unique way to the others.
The concept of this game really shaped our play together but it was the people closest to us, especially Tyler’s family, that truly filled it with substance and improved the quality from our previous incarnation to “Family First”. This is what brought it to life, they say write what you know, right?
Who is your favourite playwright?
Tyler:
Gareth Farr, specifically his play ‘Britannia Waves The Rules’. I think that it is an incredibly clever piece as Gareth identifies and delivers his message both efficiently and creatively. In terms of practitioners, I’ve always been in love with Gecko Theatre work. If you get chance, go and see these guys live because they’re awesome, their work literally translates to audiences across the globe.
Danté:
Arinzé Kene is one of mine. Throughout my time at drama school, I became appreciative of stories and experiences that are exclusive to specific people, like those in the BAME community. However, my true love drew towards the stories that can happen to anyone and the people just happen be, like in my case, black. This grew when I saw the same, recycled, types of stories surrounding black characters or no new characters in the media.
Arinzé Kene’s play, “Misty”, captured me because it challenges ideas of stereotypes and the idea that certain experiences can happen to anyone despite the persons initial biases. It was one of the first plays that kick-started the idea of what kind of artist I want to be.
What’s the dream venue for Family First?
Before we get there, as we said before, we’d love to get our play into pubs and community spaces, enabling working-class audiences and non-regular theatre goers to experience the piece. However, it would mean an awful lot to get this into Leeds Playhouse, a place that has meant a lot to us at the start of our careers, having both performed in the courtyard theatre during our third year shows.
What do you see for the future of Family First?
At the time of this interview, following the rehearsed reading, we’re currently preparing for a read through of the next draft with the intention of taking the show on tour in September. From there, we are playing it by ear; after three years of work on this play, I think we’ve learnt to be patient and just take it as we go.
Photography credits: Lee Davidson / Instagram: @snapsbylee
