Equus producer David Pugh
announced yesterday that there will be no age limit for audience members of Dan Radcliffe’s new play, despite graphic violence and explicit nude scenes. This decision goes against other West End theatres’ policies and is expected to raise some highly controversial debate.
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We will offer parental guidance and we will point out that some scenes in Equus are unsuitable for children. But there will not be a ban on them attending the performance. Every child is different and they will react to the play differently.
I am not going to start playing the game where I say you can't come because you are 11 or you can't come because you are 14.
Who the hell am I to start saying that?
I saw the play at 14 and it changed my life. If I hadn't seen it I wouldn't be producing it now.
Equus, which centers around the relationship between a psychiatrist and his disturbed teenage patient, includes nudity and violent images of the teen blinding horses with a metal spike.
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The nudity and those scenes are an essential part of the story. We are not doing it as an excuse to show Harry Potter's willy.
Daniel is fully committed to the role and he has not asked for any special favours.
While some critics don’t feel Dan’s acting ability is up to the challenging role,
Equus author, Peter Shaffer, isn’t among them. For years, Shaffer has refused to back other productions of his award-winning play, but was so impressed by Dan’s audition that he fully supports this one.
David Pugh explains:
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It wasn't a question of finding a play for Daniel to do because we knew it would be a hit.
I have been wanting to do a production of Equus for eight years and the problem has always been finding the right boy.
When Daniel performed for us at the workshop we couldn't take our eyes off him.