The Walrus Has a Right To Adventure at Liverpool Everyman announces full cast

The Walrus Has a Right To Adventure is a fast-paced, climate-conscious feel-good play by Wirral writer Billie Collins, which premieres at the Everyman, Liverpool, for just ten performances, from Thursday 12 to Saturday 21 June.

Boasting live Foley sound-effects, bringing nature vividly to life, The Walrus Has a Right To Adventure is directed by Nathan Crossan-Smith. The cast is Tasha Dowd, Reginald Edwards and Princess Khumalo.

Inspired by strange but true headlines, including a white stag being spotted in the town centre of Bootle, Merseyside in 2021, the play follows three very different people as the wild unexpectedly enters their ordinary lives.

Tasha Dowd, writer of Tell Me How it Ends, which was produced by Liverpool Everyman in 2024, plays Rio, a sweet and earnest Tesco nightshift worker from Liverpool’s night takes an unexpected turn when a stag crashes into the store like something out of a Tom Hardy film. The encounter prompts a moment of reflection, leading Rio to question parts of their identity. As an actor, Tasha’s credits include Stocking Fillers and Vernons Girls at the Royal Court, Liverpool.

LIPA graduate Princess Khumalo, whose credits include The Streets Where We Live (Falling Doors, Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse), plays Hazel, a sharp and witty woman living in Colorado Springs with her boyfriend Aiden, is caught off guard when he attempts to propose with a bear standing just behind him. The surreal moment gets Hazel thinking about love, life choices, and what settling down really means.

Oskar, a Norwegian tour guide from a long line of disapproving fishermen, turns up to work one day to find a walrus has taken over his boat, forcing him to rethink not just his next move, but how to keep making a living. Oskar is played by Reginald Edwards, whose credits include Great Expectations (Manchester Royal Exchange), A Christmas Carol, Hamlet, and Frankenstein (TNT/ADG Europe), as well as The Comeback Special and The Collector (Hope Street Theatre).

The play introduces characters at very different stages of their lives, offering something relatable for audiences of all ages and backgrounds. The story also includes a heartfelt queer narrative, which the writer hopes will resonate with LGBTQ+ audiences looking for authentic and meaningful representation on stage.

Wirral-born writer Billie Collins has had a long-standing connection with Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse, first engaging with the theatres as a teenager. This new production continues the organisation’s commitment to nurturing regional talent by bringing Billie’s latest work to the stage. A graduate of the BBC Writersroom Northern Voices programme, Billie’s recent credits include Peak Stuff (ThickSkin Theatre, UK Tour), Too Much World at Once (Box of Tricks Theatre, UK Tour), Saga (BBC Radio 4) and episodes of Malory Towers series 5 and 6 (King Bert Productions for CBBC).

Billie said:

‘The title, The Walrus Has a Right To Adventure, came from a news story about a walrus that strayed into backyards in Kotka, Finland, which was shared in my family WhatsApp group. That sparked the idea for this play, which explores themes of nature and climate, and the gap between our ideas of these things and what they’re really like. But I think it’s also about responsibility and freedom. Each character is struggling in some way with a weight of obligation – to their families, their jobs, their community… What happens when you realise you’re not really living the life you want? How can you make a change?’

The Walrus Has a Right To Adventure is directed by Nathan Crossan-Smith, who worked with Young Everyman Playhouse (YEP) on A Monster Calls in 2024. There is a workshop on Saturday 21 June with director Nathan Crossan-Smith, exploring how Nathan has used Foley and soundscapes to bring writer’s vision to life. Composer and Sound designer Oliver Vibrans (Romeo and Juliet, Shakespeare North Playhouse), an Ivor Novello Award-winning composer, brings live Foley sound effects to the performance. The cast has trained as foley artists, recreating the sounds of the natural world in real time on the stage to immerse the audience more deeply in the play’s environment.

Lighting Designer Rajiv Pattani, whose credits include Yellowman at the Orange Tree Theatre was nominated for Best Lighting Design at the Broadway World UK Awards in 2022. Set and Costume design is by Chloe Wyn (These Majestic Creatures, Stephen Joseph Theatre), Voice Coach is Rachel Nicholson and Abbie Caskie from YEP joins the production as Trainee Assistant Director, working alongside Nathan Crossan-Smith.

There is a post-show discussion following the Wednesday 18 June performance, with members of the cast and company. Accessible performances include a Captioned Performance on Monday 16 June at 7:30pm and an Audio-described Performance on Thursday 19 June at 7:30pm. The Walrus Has a Right To Adventure was developed with the support of the National Theatre’s Generate programme.