Rookwood - a dark musical comedy

The Story

Two brothers fight at their father's funeral, setting in motion a surreal and deadly journey.

Synopsis

Rookwood is a darkly comic and surreal musical that reveals the tumultuous story of Tom and his older brother Godfrey as they navigate grief, sibling rivalry, and existential dilemmas in the aftermath of their father's funeral at Rookwood Cemetery.

The story begins as the estranged brothers clash beside their father's grave. Godfrey, hardened and cynical, believes the world is a jungle where only the ruthless survive, while Tom believes life is a school meant for growth, kindness, and learning. Their heated exchange culminates in a fateful, violent encounter, when Godfrey confesses to a dark deed from their shared past and, in a burst of rage, 'murders' his brother.

Godfrey hides Tom's body in their father's coffin, but Tom is not dead. Trapped, lying on his father's corpse, and with limited oxygen, Tom disassociates from his body and confronts a parade of philosophical and spiritual figures drawn from the mourners at the funeral and seen through his imagination. Rawkins, a staunch atheist science teacher, the devout and punitive nuns, his grasping aunt, and the mystical witches, each present radically different visions of truth, suffering, and meaning.

Guided by the enigmatic guru, Yuthumi, and the wisdom of singing trees, Tom wrestles with vengeance, forgiveness, and the measure of a life well-lived. Two lessons emerge: Tom must understand who he is and why he's really trapped. Meanwhile, Godfrey is left to battle the demons of his own creation in a psychological landscape that mirrors his inner turmoil.

As dawn breaks, the gravedigger returns to fill in the grave and Godfrey returns to the scene of the crime, we learn if Tom survived the night, and whether he's learned the lessons that will ultimately set him free.

Download the first four scenes

The script is available on request.