For this month’s Sheffield Theatres spotlight, we sat down with actor and playwright Jack Holden, alongside onstage musician John Patrick Elliot, to hear about their new production KENREX. The one-man play dives into the chilling true story of Ken Rex McElroy, a small-town tyrant from Skidmore, Missouri, whose reign of terror ended in a public killing that still haunts the community.
What drew you to the story of Ken Rex McElroy, and how did you come across it initially?
JH: The story of Ken Rex McElroy’s reign of terror over the residents of Skidmore, Missouri may seem niche – but it’s actually a really universal story of good and bad, wrong and right, justice and injustice. When co-writer and director Ed Stambollouian and I found it, we knew it would be a huge challenge to bring to stage – especially in the form of a one-man show… but we love a challenge!
You mentioned that KENREX shares DNA with Cruise, your Olivier Award-nominated début. What are some specific elements that carry over, and what makes KENREX unique?
JH: Just like Cruise, KENREX is filled with big characters, irresistible music, and handbrake turns from tragedy to comedy. I take on some 25 characters and John Patrick Elliott accompanies me live with a whole host of instruments. Thematically, however, KENREX is totally different: I don’t have a personal connection to this community and I am not a Midwestern American… but this story is just as gripping, even more eye-popping and unlike anything you’ve seen before.
As a one-man show, how do you approach playing multiple characters while keeping the narrative cohesive and engaging?
JH: In truth, the show is a duet between me and John Patrick Elliott – his music keeps the whole show moving and wonderfully sets location and mood. Plus incredible direction, lighting, sound and set help glue the show together. But my job is to help the audience out as much as possible: each character has to be super defined in voice and physicality. The story itself is breathless and tense, so as long as we communicate it clearly, the audience will piece it together themselves – like all good True Crime shows…
The play is set in the American Midwest during the 1970s. What sort of research did you do to capture the era and its atmosphere?
JH: Co-writer and director Ed Stambollouian and I know this true story inside out. We’ve spent years reading books and articles, listening to podcasts and watching documentaries on the story of Ken Rex McElroy. The real challenge therefore has been one of curation: which parts do we focus on and which parts do we leave out, while keeping the story clear? We decided to focus on the most atmospheric parts.
The soundtrack is described as “foot-stomping Americana.” How did you develop the musical style to complement and enhance the narrative?
JPE: Part of the music’s job in the show is to help evoke that mythical setting of the American Midwest – in particular the small, dusty town of Skidmore as it exists in the memory of our narrator. To do that the music draws on Americana, country, bluegrass, folk-rock, and also a hint of Wild West movie scores at times. Alongside that there’s this kind of simmering electronic world, because the story unravels out of evidence tapes, police radios and recorded interviews, so I wanted the music to feel like it’s warping and getting chewed up like old cassette tapes throughout the show.
Can you tell us about the collaborative process between you and Jack? How did the music and script inform each other?
JPE: Jack and Ed had quite a clear idea of what the music’s function would be in the play when I first came on board. Since then we’ve developed and tested the piece in lots of different forms, and the music has always been a key part of that process so it’s almost like a character all of its own now. We now have full songs and instrumentals that have helped shape how the story’s told, and I love making theatre in this way where you bring musical ideas to the process very early in the development of a piece, so that the music and the storytelling intertwine.
What challenges did you face when performing live music alongside Jack’s performance? Did you find yourself adapting the music to his rhythms and character changes?
JPE: Although Jack’s acting, it feels to me like performing alongside another musician because I think we have a natural shared sense of rhythm and melody. And after performing Cruise together however many hundreds of times over the years that connection’s become even stronger. The challenge for me as a composer who’s also performing is to make sure the music can evolve and respond in the moment to what Jack’s doing, so that the performance feels really alive as we try to keep up with each other and with the story. Trying to change instruments as quickly as he changes character is a challenge at times!
With both of you being long-time fans of True Crime, how did you balance the factual elements of Ken Rex McElroy’s story with dramatic interpretation?
JH: The truth of this story is far stranger than fiction, so we’ve really not had to embellish or twist anything for dramatic effect. We’ve imagined some scenes that haven’t been recorded – just like the makers of The Crown had to imagine what the Royals said behind closed doors. But we could honestly have filled five plays with the events that unfolded in Skidmore, so compelling are the details. We hope audiences go home and research it further after the show!
What do you hope Sheffield audiences take away from KENREX? How do you think it might resonate with local or UK audiences?
JH: It’s always good to see stories from different parts of the world. It transports audiences, it asks them to use their imaginations more keenly and fosters empathy in all of us. But Skidmore, Missouri could be any small town in any country – so it should make audiences reflect on their own communities and wonder if they contain bullies, gossips, liars, cowards… or even those with the capability to kill…
KENREX runs at Sheffield Theatres’ Playhouse, 26 Oct–16 Nov. Tickets (£25) available from sheffieldtheatres.co.uk.
