Worcester-based full mask theatre company Vamos Theatre has announced casting for its upcoming UK tour of Dead Good - a production which tackles the thorny subject of death.

Dead Good focuses on the characters of Bob and Bernard, two men who have only a couple of things in common: one, that they’re both dying; and two, that they’re not going down without a fight. With a bottle of Bollinger in hand, they set out on one final death-defying adventure in Bernard’s Bentley... Vamos have created the show in collaboration with palliative care patients and specialists.

Casting includes Alan Riley - one of the founders of iconic full mask theatre company, Trestle Theatre and James Greaves, a mainstay actor with Trestle during their most influential years. Despite James and Alan being long-standing actors with Trestle (and friends), they had little opportunity during their Trestle years to work on stage together but Dead Good gives them the chance to do just that. 

Speaking of bringing the two actors together, Director of Dead Good and Artistic Director of Vamos Theatre, Rachael Savage, said: “I wrote Dead Good especially for Alan and James and now finally after 33 years we have the opportunity to see the two finest full mask actors in the UK perform together. This is literally my dream job. They understand the language of mask theatre inside out and back to front. Dead Good is about two men and their unique friendship and this is reflected beautifully in Alan and James.

“Nearly every school in the country has a Trestle mask set stored away in a cupboard in the Drama Department, their magic still intact; but do young people and their teachers appreciate the start of mask theatre in the UK and its history? Bring your students, children, grandchildren to see Dead Good and watch first-hand this once in a lifetime opportunity to see the masters at work.”

Dead Good shows at The Swan, Worcester, 3 & 4 February; Midlands Arts Centre (mac), Birmingham, 8 & 9 February; Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury, 28 February & 1 March and Arena Theatre, Wolverhampton, 5 March.

For further deatils about Vamos Theatre, visit,