“Whether you’re a Die Hard fan or not, it guarantees happy trails.”
★★★★ The Guardian 

Yippee ki yay

“Whether you’re a Die Hard fan or not, it guarantees happy trails.”
★★★★ The Guardian 

(the parody celebration of Die Hard)

Acclaimed retelling of classic film Die Hard from Richard Marsh - Fringe First-winner, London poetry slam champion, BBC Audio Drama Best Scripted Comedy Drama award-winner and New York cop (one of these is untrue).

When gunmen seize an LA skyscraper, off-duty policeman John McClane is the hostages’ only hope. This uplifting action romp (and unauthorised parody) celebrates the iconic 80s festive favourite while also telling the personal story of a life-long Die Hard fan. Essential viewing for Hans Gruber connoisseurs and newcomers alike.

This joyfully funny show premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2022 to critical and audience acclaim and returned there in 2023.  Winner of Best Comedy at the 2023 London Pub Theatre Awards.  Touring internationally including the UK, US and Adelaide Fringe in 2024.

Suitable for ages 14 and upwards. Running time: 75 minutes

CAST AND CREATIVE TEAM

Richard Marsh – WRITER & PERFORMER
Darrel Bailey – ALTERNATE PERFORMER
Hal Chambers – DIRECTOR
Emma Webb – MOVEMENT AND ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR
Robbie Butler – LIGHTING DESIGNER
Ben Hudson – SOUND DESIGNER AND COMPOSER

Produced by James Seabright

“Epically entertaining show is a love letter to a masterpiece”
The Times

 

Tour Dates

US and UK tour dates 2024/25

Tue 5 Nov
Northern Stage
Newcastle upon Tyne, UK
19 Nov - 15 Dec
Broadway Playhouse
Chicago, IL
17 - 19 Dec
Tobin Center
San Antonio, TX
21 - 22 Dec
Wortham Theater Center
Houston, TX
26 - 29 Dec
AT&T PAC
Dallas, TX
Thu 16 Jan 2025
Pavilion Theatre
Worthing, UK
Fri 17 Jan 2025
The Core
Corby, UK
Sat 18 Jan 2025
Swan Theatre
Worcester, UK
Wed 22 Jan 2025
MAST Mayflower Studios
Southampton, UK

BIOGRAPHIES

Writer and Performer

Richard Marsh

Richard’s one-man show Skittles was commissioned for Radio 4 as Love & Sweets, and won Best Scripted Comedy in the BBC Audio Drama Awards. Dirty Great Love Story (co-written and -performed with Katie Bonna) won a Fringe First in Edinburgh before transferring to New York then the West End. Wingman sold out in Edinburgh before touring and is being developed with Big Talk for UK TV and then with CBS Studios for American TV. It has yet to be on actual TV. Richard created Radio 4 poetry sitcom Cardboard Heart, starring alongside Phil Daniels, Olivia Poulet, Jemima Rooper, Rebecca Scroggs, Russell Tovey and Sam Troughton. Richard is currently developing various TV projects and writing a musical adaptation of classic indie movie Son of Rambow (with Miranda Cooper and Nick Coler of Girls Aloud fame). He is a former London poetry slam champion.

Alternate Performer

Darrel Bailey

Darrel is a West Midlands actor who trained at Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts and most recently performed in Small Island (National). Other credits include As You Like It, The Merry Wives of Windsor, and Orsino / Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfth Night (Open Bar), Oedipus (Almeida), Alice in Wonderland (Brockwell Park), Much Ado About Nothing (St Paul’s, Covent Garden), and an immersive production of One Hundred Trillion (Dot Collective). Darrel has previously starred in Shadow and Bone (Netflix), Eastenders (BBC), and in several short films including Role, Fixing War In Post, A&E, and The Zero Hour.

Director and Dramaturg

Hal Chambers

Hal trained at Bristol Old Vic and National Theatre Studio. As Director, his credits include The Ballad of Maria Marten (Stephen Joseph, Eastern Angles, & UK tour), Michael Morpurgo’s Shakespeare Tales (RSC), Hansel and Gretel, A Christmas Carol (South Street Arts), Henry V (Barn, Cirencester), The Bear (Polka, UK and world tours), Ruff Guide to Shakespeare (Bristol Old Vic, Tour, & Edinburgh Fringe), Captain Flinn and the Pirate Dinosaurs: The Magic Cutlass (Southbank Centre, UK tour, & West End), The Strange Undoing of Prudencia Hart (Eastern Angles & UK tour), The Lights (Royal Court & Oxford School of Drama), Leaper: A Fish Tale (Lyric Hammersmith & UK tour), Vanity Fair (Middle Temple Hall), Tommy Foggo: Superhero (UK tour), Ragnarok (Eastern Angles), Helver’s Night (York Theatre Royal); The Magical Playroom (UK tour), Jackajack, Tim & Light (UK tour); Sam Rose in the Shadows, The Golden Cowpat (Greenwich & UK tour).

Movement and Associate Director

Emma Webb

Emma Webb is a movement director, teacher and performer. She trained at RCSSD and has worked with Justice in Motion, Red Dog Theatre, Oxford Playhouse, Pegasus Theatre, Old Fire Station Oxford, Creation Theatre, as well as with numerous community organisations. She is currently teaching with Bristol School of Acting and co-directing The Government Inspector with Clive Mendus of Complicité. 

Lighting Designer

Robbie Butler

Robbie trained at The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. He is an honorary life member of the Association of Lighting Designers, has been twice nominated for an Off West End Award for Best Lighting Design and was the winner of the 2015 ETC Award. Theatre includes The Gunpowder Plot Immersive Experience (Tower of London), Our Man In Havana (Watermill), MUSHY: Lyrically Speaking (Watford Palace & UK tour), The Happy Tragedy of Being Woke (Complicité - Edinburgh International Festival), The Wonderful Wizard of Oz (Bolton Octagon at the Macron Stadium), The Selfish Giant (UK tour), Down and Out: Live (La Generale, Paris), Abandoman (Underbelly). Robbie’s Opera credits include The Angel Esmeralda (Guildhall), Isabeau (Opera Holland Park), Fidelio (Polish National Opera - Associate), Il Trovatore (The Royal Danish Opera & Teatro Real Madrid - Associate), The Enchanted Pig (HGO). www.robbiebutler.com

Sound Designer and composer

Ben Hudson

Ben is a music producer and sound designer who has soundtracked films for Adidas, Vogue Italia, Lexus, Google, Nokia, Stonewall and Unicef among others.

Working closely with anarchic theatre makers, In Bed With My Brother, he has created sound for their shows PRIME TIME (Barbican), Tricky Second Album (Edinburgh) and their breakout production, WE ARE IAN. Other theatre credits include BEIGE (Magna), Ragnarok (Eastern Angles), The Mozart Question (The Barn Theatre), Helver’s Night (York Theatre Royal) and The Snow QueenHansel & GretelHenry IMatilda The Empress, The Last Abbot (Rabble).

 

Voice and Accent Coach

ALICE WHITE

Originally from Swansea, Alice is a Voice and Dialect Coach working in leading actor training institutions (including Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, Royal Central School of Speech and Drama and Royal Conservatoire of Scotland) and with professional performers and productions. Recent dialect support includes the short film Morning Star. Production support includes Sunday In The Park With George, Moon Licks (Richard Burton Company), Made in Dagenham, Spring Awakening, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels (EDA/Factory Playhouse), Boudica (Unicorn/RBC). As an actor and voice over artist, Alice’s credits include The Crown, Casualty, Richard III and Henry VI (Wales Millennium Centre) and various commercial audiobooks.

“Whether you’re a Die Hard fan or not, it guarantees happy trails.”
"Performed with energy and verve, this is an excellent homage to Die Hard"
“Beg, borrow or crawl through rat-infested air ducts for a ticket to this brilliant parody.”
"Excellent comic timing captivates”
“Playful, inventive… genius creation.”
“Fantastic …extraordinary.”
"A beautifully written rom com... absorbing and funny'
“An exciting, poetic dramedy gem… simply to Die Hard for.”
Scottish Mail
“What a lovely show… Richard Marsh delivers a spirited performance.”
“Epically entertaining show is a love letter to a masterpiece”
"Theatrical heart and a lot of laughs"
‘Mesmerising and hugely entertaining.’
“You’d have to be as heartless as Hans Gruber not to be touched and uplifted.”
The Telegraph (Best Shows Of EdFringe 2022)
"Fast, funny and thoroughly absorbing”
"Welcome treat this Christmas"
“Rollicking fun!”
‘A show for all (even non-Die Hard fans!)'
“Enjoyably silly physical comedy.”
‘Brimming with delightful one liners and clever comedy’
‘Epically entertaining.'
‘Well written and well executed performance that you’ll enjoy whether you know the movie or not’
‘Laughs aplenty… A warm hug of a one-man show for “die hard” enthusiasts.'
'A must see show for all Die Hard fans!'
'Hilarious.'
'A fun evening, especially for aficionados of Die Hard.'
'Funny, uplifting and inventive.'
“Absolutely glorious! His rhyming Bruce Willis is spot-on, but it's the concurrent love story that really pulls you in.”
British Comedy Guide

CONTACT

Marketing & Press: marketing@seabright.org
Book the show at your venue: jack@seabright.org
Seabright Live London office: +44 20 7439 1173