Village Idiot is the first piece of new writing produced by collaborative theatre network Ramps on the Moon, which strives to normalise the presence of disabled people on and off stage. Committing to a mix of disabled and non-disabled actors in their casts, access is embedded into their productions; here, closed captions appear above the stage and the environment is relaxed.
Our attention is playfully drawn to this at the start of this Theatre Royal Stratford East production, which sets the tone of silliness that will follow – aided by the framing device of a village talent show. From here, we’re treated to an increasingly eccentric revolving door of acts.
