The Dandelion Child
A multi-genre touring production staged in the round within unconventional spaces for an intimate audience, created, performed and co-directed by Luke Brown and Ben Wright. Development supported by Arts Council England, Crying Out Loud, Portsmouth Guildhall, Tobacco Factory Bristol & Rich Mix London. Currently looking for co-commissioning partners for the full creation phase in 2026.
“Following twenty-five years of revolutionary research, Dr Boyce discovered that children are either orchids – sensitive, fragile, more susceptible to their surroundings – or dandelions – hardy, resilient and able to thrive regardless of conditions around them.” The Orchid and the Dandelion: W Thomas Boyce, MD
The Show
The Dandelion Child, set in the early 1990s, sheds light on the profound impact of domestic abuse on children and how that manifests in adulthood. An honest sharing of the multifaceted ways in which trauma bites me in the arse, makes me howl with laughter, cry with sadness, and crave for physical touch, battle with loneliness, long for parents and wonder if I could ever be a dad – a gay dad at that. The Dandelion Child is an autobiographical survival story. An immersive, in-the-round multi-sensory theatrical experience. Set around an ever-shifting table, this show combines movement, puppetry, digital projection and storytelling in an intimate performance, inviting you to sit at my table and witness a world where memory, fantasy, and activism meet. A story of identity, acceptance, denial and recovery, performed by Luke Brown & Ben Wright with honesty, humour and a spirit of hope.
Performance Contexts
The aim of this show is to program it into unconventional spaces. Audience numbers will be limited to 100, with 20 seated at the table and the rest in a larger circle around it. Because the work deals with themes of power and disenfranchisement, we would love to site the work in venues that have a connection to these themes- either a sense of opulence and grandeur, or those with a pedestrian use- mayoral banqueting halls, civic celebration spaces, school halls, council offices, law courts, police custody suites, hospitals, historic venues. Also suitable for studio theatres and cabaret venues.
The Audience
The Dandelion Child speaks to anyone who has ever tried to rebuild, to love, or to find light in the dark. It dares to ask what it means to survive, and to do so with laughter and grace. This is a work that celebrates resilience and the messy beauty of adulting. It’s a show for anyone who has ever felt unseen, unheard, or uncertain of where they belong.
The aim is for people to come away not diminished by what they’ve witnessed, but uplifted by what’s possible. I aim for it to be the kind of theatre that starts conversations, builds empathy, and reminds us why we gather together to share stories in the first place.
The Community
The Dandelion Child is a continuation of work that we have been doing for the last 5 years, using the dandelion as a symbol of resilience. We have delivered workshops ranging from 1-hour family-friendly crafting to 5-day intensives to young people facing mental health challenges. We will create a range of engagement offerings alongside the stage show, knowing that the symbol of the dandelion can safely open doors to begin discussions around the themes this work explores.
I am a queer, neurodiverse artist from a working-class background, and I use my lived experiences to inform the way I connect with people who engage with this work.
“Luke’s storytelling was crisp, direct, intimate and Rich. His courage in telling his personal experiences was arresting and gave the unstable quality of authenticity to the sharing”. Portsmouth Guildhall
The video below is from the initial research and development phase of 2019. Currently in research and development. Supported by Arts Council England, Portsmouth Guildhall; Arnold Clark Community Fund, Crying Out Loud
