Set in an aquarium, ‘The Gloomy Octopus Story’ is a play about grief and mental health.
Introvert Stevie only wants to swap magical stories with their imaginary friend Lanny. But no matter how wonderful Lanny’s stories are, they always come back to something dark that Stevie isn’t ready to talk about.
Meanwhile something is wrong in the real world, and Stevie is having difficulty holding on to the imaginary. Memories of their grumpy sibling, Mel, keep surfacing, and Lanny wants to get to the truth that Stevie is concealing.
The performance features music by Marshpoem.
Part of Wandsworth New Writing Festival.