Through his incredible skill, and the huge talent and commitment of the young people and team of Oasis Youth Theatre, these raw words were transformed into a stunning performance that brought the audience to tears at each of its performances. She had taught his plays for many years – Dan had studied ‘Legal Weapon’ himself at school – and she had witnessed the power of his writing on young people. The National Youth Theatre’s Rep Company is celebrating its first ten years and Susan Elkin paid a visit to learn more. This short documentary, produced by Danny Sturrock, shows the journey of the play from the page to the stage and beyond, through interviews with Dan’s parents, Tim and Fiona, playwright Mark Wheeller, and members of the Oasis Youth Theatre cast, along with extracts of the original OYT production in 2016. This first tour to theatres is taking the play to a whole new audience outside schools, where it’s been touring for the last few years.

Alysha Jade Patis - OYT performerThis poignant and eminently readable biography of the play is drawn from interviews with Dan’s family, friends and the OYT company. The moving performances combined with Daniels’ parent’s filmed conversations explaining how they felt about their son and their depth of grief explores in detail the devastating impact and void which is felt by everyone who knew him. This play has a message much bigger than the assumption ‘drugs are bad’ it shows the power of friendship, trust, family and love and how one person’s actions can have dire consequences on all of those.We wish you and your family all the very best for the future and we will continue to do what we can to tell Dan’s story. This book offers a unique and useful guide for teaching/studying this play and includes a detailed scheme of work for teachers using the play as a set text in the EDUQAS GCSE Drama examination. I Love You, Mum – I Promise I Won’t Dietells the tragic true story of the death of Daniel Spargo-Mabbs following an MDMA overdose. I’m not that stupid” attitude but sitting there with her last night and seeing how much it affected her emotionally and the conversation we had after made me think that she’s not. Don’t miss Mark Wheeller’s beautifully-written play and Octopus Dream’s acclaimed production, touring to theatres across the country for the first time.

As well as the topical subject matter, the reality of Dan's story, and its great energy and emotion, this play is very accessible. This play, which runs at around 90 minutes with no interval, is a love letter to Daniel Spargo-Mabbs. A new book to support teachers and students studying the play has been produced by Mark Wheeller, ‘The Story Behind…I Love You, Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die’.

So, when the tragedy happened, his Drama teacher contacted playwright Mark Wheeller with the suggestion of using Dan as the subject for a play. It's powerful, not only because it's truthful, but because of the hard-hitting words used by real people that convey their devastation and loss.

He has three children and lives just outside the New Forest, with his wife Rachael, and Labrador, Dusty. It’s all there in the controlled, understated performances and the poignancy of the filmed interviews. I have taught Drama for over 20 years now, and have lost count of how many plays I have directed, but the impact at the end of last night’s performance on both cast and audience was something I have never experienced in education. By Easter it will have reached around 55,000 young people, and is a core component of our drug education programme.An abridged version has toured to many secondary schools across the country and has been seen by thousands of young people, but we always wanted to share the full version with a theatre audience. Most telling of all Amy Zoldan as Alice wrestles with her conscience as the person who everyone blames for Dan’s death. Conversations after seeing a play like this let the audience into the decision making process, problem solving and understanding the consequences. I Love You, Mum - I Promise I Won't Die was commissioned by the charity set up in Daniel's memory to raise awareness about the danger of party drugs. Scott-Ward and Colley become the parents, Zoldan Jenna and Radford Jacob, the elder brother, as we explore the heartbreak of the next few days – and beyond.