"When the wolf sings, the forest dances."

~James Hyland, Artistic Director

 

Brother Wolf was established in 1998 by James Hyland and in the 26 years since has created award-winning productions which have been presented at some of the most prestigious venues in the UK such as The Royal Albert Hall, The Lyric and The Alban Arena. The company's manifesto was to produce cutting edge drama and comedy with the focus on original material and new adaptations of literary classics. Its first production was 'Dead Meat', a grotesque farce written by James Hyland. Opening to rave reviews this was quickly followed by the equally successful 'Play the Game', a dark lampoon, also written by James. Before long the company had moved into television and radio production, culminating in the underground hit 'The London Shadow Show', a sketch-based comedy series inspired by the penny gaffs of Victorian London. The core of the repertoire has always been to produce fresh and challenging productions. Three of its most long-running touring productions are 'A Christmas Carol - As told by Jacob Marley (deceased)', 'Fagin's Last Hour', and 'Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'.

 

Following the box office success of several nationwide tours, 'A Christmas Carol - As told by Jacob Marley (deceased)' and its creator, James Hyland, were honoured in 2012 with the award for Best Performer in Theatre (Fringe Report Awards 2012) and a nomination for The London Theatre Award (London Awards for Art and Performance 2012). John Park, Director of the Fringe Report Awards, said "The award celebrates the work of James Hyland, actor, and in particular his creation and delivery of 'A Christmas Carol - As told by Jacob Marley (deceased)'. It reflects his fine work as an actor in film, TV, radio and theatre in a remarkable range of productions."

 

Further honours were bestowed by Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace in recognition of Dickensian scholarship. By 2012, The Courier described the work of Brother Wolf as "truly astonishing... unforgettable theatre at its best." By 2014,  'A Christmas Carol - As told by Jacob Marley (deceased)' had been officially rated as one of "the top Christmas shows in London, Edinburgh and around the UK" – High 50 Culture. The show's unique presentation has even been discussed in best-selling books about the theatre. In 2018, during the 175th anniversary of Dickens' original novella, the award-winning production was staged at The Royal Albert Hall, selling out to capacity. Other industry awards for Brother Wolf include The Hamilton Deane Award for 'Dracula's Guest' (The Dracula Society, 2022), an OffComm Commendation for 'Fagin's Last Hour' (Off West End Awards, 2023), an OffComm Commendation for 'Dracula's Guest' (Off West End Awards, 2022), Best Male Act (Solo Fest 2013) for 'Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde' and Top Off West End Production (Centre Stage Stars of 2018) for 'Fagin's Last Hour'. Brother Wolf continues its legacy of five-star shows with its latest productions: 'A Lesson from Auschwitz', a powerful Holocaust drama, commended by The Foundation of Memory Sites Near Auschwitz-Birkenau,'The Mad Hatter's Tea Party', a ground-breaking stage adaptation of Lewis Carroll's 'Alice in Wonderland', 'Dracula's Guest', an all-new award-winning interpretation based on the works of Bram Stoker, 'Silver and Gold', a highly original mondrama based on Robert Louis Stevenson's literary classic 'Treasure Island', and 'Uncle Jimmy', a dynamic short film.

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