The King Of Nothing
Sat 11 – Sun 12 NovMONSTRO Theatre’s new show The King of Nothing is an anarchic piece of musical puppet theatre inspired by Hans Christian Andersen’s classic The Emperor’s New Clothes.
Two giant carpet bags begin to rustle. Out pops a hand. A head. A ukulele… It’s a pair of professional Swindlers (or are they actors?) on the run from their latest Swindling job. The two rogues proceed to swindle the audience into believing we can see all sorts of things: a palace, a crew of cringing courtiers and a very vain King.
The King loves clothes. The only question of state is: what to wear? Day at the seaside? The polka-spotted swimsuit! Night at the Disco? The gold sequins! Riots in the streets? The suit of armour! Our lovable Swindlers (oh, sorry: “Weavers”) soon have this one covered, offering the foppish King a suit made of this wonderful magical fabric they are weaving. You know the one. The magical one that YOU CAN’T SEE IF YOU’RE STUPID! Oh yes, that one. Isn’t it beautiful? Oh yes, agree all the King’s courtiers. Oh yes, agrees the King, as the Swindlers adeptly pull his puppet-strings.
The day of the Big Parade arrives, and it’s not so much that the King has nothing to wear: it’s that he has to Wear Nothing! What will happen when the naked truth emerges? Who will be found out first? And…hang on a minute…where are those “Weavers”…?
True to Hans Christian Andersen’s original, The King of Nothing reminds us how our endless human desire for status and approval can lead us to believe in all kinds of things that simply don’t exist…
