A rodent to remember. Fox Jackson-Keen on playing Roger in I Was A Rat!

The whole process for I Was
A Rat has been different than anything else I have been
involved in. Working with Teresa Ludovico, who conceived and
directed the piece and the whole creative team has been fantastic. We
started with a week-long workshop with cast, musicians and creatives
side-by-side trying things, expressing individually and collectively
what we thought about the piece and our characters. That same
thinking moved to rehearsal and then into the performance the whole
process was about the journey of our characters… it’s been
amazing

How have you found
that the way you approached/played the role has varied (or not)
during the tour?

I think that I have moved from
knowing my character Roger to understanding
Roger and the whole context of the play. That has informed my part. I
knew how to play him but now I understand who he is and I feel his
emotions in the situations he is in – and if you know the play,
sometimes that is painful. But I think has made my performances
stronger as we have moved through the tour.

How
has your experience of playing the part of Billy Elliot fed into
this role?

I’m not sure that it has, but what I have
realised is that in any part one plays there has to be a little of
one’s own personal story, or to find something personal in the
part.
But the experience of being in Billy,
working with older, more experienced performers, the constant
development, the performing, the rehearsals, the tech runs, the
audience, the interviews all that has helped me with Roger and
I Was A Rat!

How
have audiences at the different venues reacted to the play?

The
tour has been incredible, playing in different historic venues all
over the country, all with a different feel. It has made me
appreciate how special this tour is. As for different reactions, I
Was A Rat! is such a remarkable play that everyone, young
and old has been reacting very strongly. They all laugh at the funny
parts, and there are a lot of gasps when I am beaten and clap along
to my dance…. which I love.

What
have you got lined up next?

Next! I haven’t
had the time to think about next!! I have been totally focused
on I Was A Rat! and we still have six weeks to go,
but I will make a note to my agent and ask. Thanks for the reminder.

Fox’s theatre credits
include playing Billy Elliot in Billy Elliot
(Victoria Palace Theatre).
Television credits
include Sadie J 3 (BBC), Doctors
(BBC) and My Phone Genie (CITV).
Fox is thrilled to be
playing this part, having enjoyed the book, and hopes that you
will come to see it and enjoy it as much as he does.