A narrative focusing on the day to day interactions of a young protagonist, Arinzé Kene and tiata fahodzi’s production of good dog highlights a voice often ignored within the wider world. In light of stereotypical and harmful narratives constantly portrayed within the media, this immediate production brings to the fore the realities of a young black male, brought up in multicultural London yet faced with everyday injustices. Making its debut in 2017, critically acclaimed good dog returns for a national tour. Ahead of the first show at Watford Palace Theatre, actor Kwaku Mills talks to us about taking on the ‘distinctively lyrical’ monologue, the show’s topical themes and what audiences can expect from the show.

What universally are the most important themes that tie us together? Love? Family? Loss? Forgiveness? For millennia, these are ideas that have been continually looked at, questioned, idealised and analysed in literature, theatre and within the last century film and TV and yet in 2016 we still find ourselves drawn by these themes… but why? Because they are complicated. They are multi-faceted and we always seem to seek wisdom on them… Laila the Musical loosly clasps onto these concepts, and bridges the gap between an ancient world, and our modern technology-centric landscape.

A typical family? What does that even mean? The nuclear family? Mother, father, son and daughter? A single parent household; mother and daughter? Father and son? Vice versa. The list goes on and on. They say you can’t live with your family, but simultaneously you can’t live without them. The familial structure is a complicated one, especially when you throw in the devastating effects of death.

Away from the vibrant and forever moving nature of the metropolitan, the bright lights of the city and the continual advancements and innovations within technology, it is easy to forget, be unaware or even take for granted the world in which we live and its significance.