Ian Houghton – The Wider Earth
Ian co-stared as Robert Darwin and Richard Matthews in Trish Wadley Productions’ The Wider Earth, in association with The Dead Puppet Society and The Natural History Museum.
The Wider Earth has been nominated for Best Entertainment and Family at the 2019 Olivier Awards!
Written, directed and co-designed by David Morton, it followed the life of a 22-year old freshly-graduated Charles Darwin as he embarks upon arguably the most significant expedition in scientific history, the voyage of the HMS Beagle.
Although he originally enlisted as the crew’s geologist, Darwin would use the experiences he had and the detailed observations of the flora and fauna he encountered to lay the foundations for a revolutionary new theory, that species were not fixed but ever-changing. Once he got back to England after circumnavigating the globe in the space of almost 5 years, he would commit these ideas to paper where they evolved into the Theory of Natural Selection.
Robert Darwin was Charles’ father, a highly successful and respected doctor who was deeply frustrated by his son’s lack of direction. He expected that Charles would find some kind of acceptable occupation but this has brought him into conflict with his young son’s obsession with natural history.
Richard Matthews was a missionary charged by the Beagle’s captain Robert FitzRoy to escort a native Patagonian known to the British as “Jemmy Button” (real name Orundellico) to his family in Tierra del Fuego at the tip of South America and to open a Christian mission there. He was a deeply devout man who initially served as an emotional ballast for Charles before their relationship was foundered by Darwin’s insistence on questioning the origins of the natural world.
Featuring spectacular puppetry, an original score and cinematic animations, it opened at the brand-new theatre in the Jerwood Gallery at the Natural History Museum in London on the 13th of October with previews running from until the 2nd before closing in February the 24rd.
For the Trailer click here
For More Information click here
For Tickets click here
For Ian’s Profile click here
