PHAEDRA     

Female.  Aged 15 with the voice of an angel. She’s a little lost.  Ethereal, dreamlike but grounded in fear.

Should feel like a symbol and a human at the same time.

MS FAWCETT  &   MR PARSONS  

Female 30 – 55 and Male 25 – 45   

Crisp, formal, humourless (but funny to the audience).  They are the straight line to Rooster’s chaotic curve.  Their presence contracts the world every time they appear

JOHNNY ‘ROOSTER’ BYRON

Male 45 – 55    Rooster must feel larger-than-life, mythic, yet utterly grounded and recognisable.  He is charismatic and magnetic, but also wounded, defiant, fringe-dweller.  He carries the landscape (the woods, the trailer, the ley-lines) in his body.  He’s the central figure around which others orbit; he sets the tone—wild, poetic, chaotic—but also vulnerable.

GINGER

Male 25 – 35.  Ginger is Rooster’s cohort / right-hand; he feels loyal, slightly awed, rough-edged.  He embodies the fringe community: uneasy between admiration and fear.  The actor should reflect a mixture of awe, resentment, comic relief, and genuine attachment.  Spatially: when Rooster dominates, Ginger supports; when Rooster is challenged, Ginger shows fear or defiance.

PROFESSOR

Male 65 – 90 Should have a gentle, dreamy quality — like a mind half in another world.  Dialogue must feel sincere, never played for cheap laughs.  Moments of prophecy (“the giants are coming”) must be delivered with truth, not irony.  Physically: slightly dislocated, slow, sees things others don’t.  He gives the play weight — a reminder that Rooster’s myth might actually be real.

LEE

Male 20 – 35 Has a soft, mystical energy — not funny because he tries to be funny, but because he’s earnest.  Needs to feel like the most spiritually attuned of the young people.  Slightly fragile, thoughtful, but also hopeful — he sees possibility where others see boredom.  Should bring a sense of ancient importance to seemingly simple scenes.  He helps elevate the setting: not just a trailer in woods, but sacred ground.

DAVEY

Male 20 – 35   Dry humour is essential — Davey’s comedy comes from blunt honesty.  Must seem intelligent, but with a sense of being trapped in a small town. Emotionally guarded — he won’t admit he cares, even when he does.  Has affection for Rooster but sees him more realistically than Ginger does.  His stillness is a counterbalance to the chaos of other young characters.

PEA

Female 16. Should feel energetic, cheeky, playful, with moments of sharp vulnerability.  Not a caricature of a “teen”—she must feel real, local, and alive.  Her humour comes from attitude and bravado.  Chemistry with Tanya is important: the pair should feel like best friends who give each other courage.  The actor must balance lightness with an underlying sense of risk.

TANYA

Female 16. Confident, loud, impulsive, with flashes of real tenderness.  Needs to show the “cool girl” front while letting the cracks show occasionally.  Strong rhythm and timing: Tanya’s lines often land like verbal darts.  Should feel slightly more daring than Pea but no more mature.  Needs to show the “cool girl” front while letting the cracks show occasionally.  Strong rhythm and timing: Tanya’s lines often land like verbal darts.  Should feel slightly more daring than Pea but no more mature.

The Pea–Tanya duo must feel effortless and lived-in — like two girls who’ve grown up together.

WESLEY

Male 40 – 55. Worn-out, compromised, slightly tragic but comic.  Wants order but secretly longs for Rooster’s freedom.  His Morris dance scene reveals his heart.

DAWN

Female 40 – 55. Emotional truth above all.  Loves Rooster but cannot live in his chaos.  Any scene with Dawn cracks the myth and exposes the man underneath.

MARKY

Male aged 6. Must feel natural, loving, not sentimental.  His presence reminds the audience what Rooster stands to lose.  Marky seeks normalcy (school, friends) vs the world of Rooster.  Relationship with Rooster: tender, tentative, heavy with expectation.

TROY WHITWORTH

Male 35 – 50

2 males adult non-speaking.   25 – 45 strong build.