Mad King Productions Aims To Be a Theater Company for Adults

What began as a spontaneous idea over a game of Dungeons & Dragons — “What if we did Drunk History, but with Shakespeare?” — has evolved into one of Utah’s most unique, inclusive and fast-growing indie theater companies.

Mad King Productions, co-founded by husband and wife James and Carleigh-Jo Naylor and their good friend Madman Madriaga, launched its first production in 2019: a riotous rendition of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at The Garten Cider House & Bar. The concept? A Shakespeare play, progressively fueled by alcohol. “Actors get progressively drunker by drinking beer throughout the show,” says the company. It was the debut of what would become their signature format, drunken Shakespeare.

Those first two productions were full-on guerrilla theater, the three joke. “Bouncing around, finding a bar where we can perform in, throwing up tents for dressing rooms,” recalls Carleigh-Jo, who functions as the group’s artistic director. One show was mounted for less than $1,000, James adds, including “costumes, set, rehearsals, everything.”

So when the pandemic hit, the pause became a pivot. “That gave us time to reorganize and prepare, and we launched Mad King Productions as an actual company and LLC,” says Madriaga.

A theater company for adults

Now, they have their first-ever physical space, on the second level of The Gateway by the Megaplex, having transformed the former hair salon into a black box theater with the help of friends, past showgoers and pure willpower. Getting to the point to be able to get their own space has 100% validated their mission, says Carleigh-Jo. Plus, it’s best that they can rehearse and build their sets on the stage that will host the final performances. 

Since the beginning, Mad King Productions has centered around fostering an inclusive space, the founders say. “We strive to be a safe place for all identities, communities, marginalized groups because it’s important,” says Madriaga. “It’s tough out there, and having a space, especially for adults, where they can do what they love and have fun doing it and feel safe is very important and very special.”

That’s something each of them have found in theater, even from a young age — so why should it stop at adulthood? For James and Carleigh-Jo, theater is what brought them together in high school. Theater is how Carleigh-Jo and Madriaga first met, too. Even in a theater-loving state like Utah, a community like Mad King Productions is still needed, they say. “Utah tends to have its own little circle, a little bubble of its community,” says Madriaga. “It can be jarring for people from outside [the state] to come into Utah” — James jumps in — “Like, [to] audition and not get cast in shows because they don’t ‘fit the mold.’”

That’s one reason why they’re committed to working with disabled actors, says Carleigh-Jo: “All it takes is just communicating and listening to them.” They also cast actors with zero experience, from any background. “We found a guy on Craigslist once,” she recalls. “He showed up and was like, ‘I don’t know, I’ve never done a show, but people say I’m funny.’ And he was, he was incredible.”

As they’ve grown financially, they’ve been able to purchase the rights to stage works like Proof and Heathers: The Musical. The goal is to bring theater favorites with adult themes that may intimidate other companies, says Carleigh-Jo. “We decided that the niche that we’re trying to fill is one that was left vacant once Utah Repertory Theater went under,” she explains. “We’re trying to find this place in between — shows that are either just not done enough, or other theater companies are a little too scared to do.”

Because they tackle more intense topics in their shows, Mad King Productions also offers actors tools and resources to help develop their craft, like an intimacy coordinator. “It’s such a huge game changer, especially for actors. The years we have spent as we were growing up in the theater community, when you have a scene with a scene partner and the director sits there and yells ‘kiss,’” Madriagg says with a laugh. Having a specific coach explain physical parameters that will look realistic to the audience, but feel much more comfortable for the actors, has helped performances from as simple as an intimate friendship moment all the way to simulated sex on stage, Carleigh-Jo says.

Ultimately, they aren’t afraid of content that challenges audiences. “What is written on the page is what we perform on the stage. So it is always the patrons’ responsibility to know what show they’re going to,” Carleigh-Jo says. However, she adds they do make thoughtful edits to Shakespeare: “We edit out a lot of the racial aspects in it. We edit out a lot of the misogyny and purity culture references in it.”

How drunken Shakespeare works

Drunken Shakespeare, not to be confused with the off-Broadway play Drunk Shakespeare, is all about making Shakespeare fun again. “Our whole purpose with drunken Shakespeare is bringing it back to the groundlings, bringing it back to common people,” says Madriaga, explaining that English class often ruins the genius of the playwright. “Shakespeare is something you have to see to understand.”

So the productions are rowdy by design, and they strip each play down to the “meat and potatoes” — but don’t worry, they keep the dick jokes, says James. The show opens with a toast and all the actors chug their first beer, then perform the first act. The second act is where the show really gets interactive: Attendees will have the opportunity to “donate” to a particular actor, then that person will be brought another beer mid-scene. “In real time, you then see the drink come out on stage to them,” Carleigh-Jo explains. “Then they have to adapt to now having their scene somewhat interrupted.” It gets chaotic — yes, “respectful” heckling is encouraged — and so much fun, the three say.

All drinking is consensual and monitored, the team assures, because safety is their first priority: “We also don’t require our actors to drink,” Carleigh-Jo says. “They can change their mind and say, ‘Hey, I need to be done drinking.’ Or the stage manager also has all authority to cut someone off.” They also coordinate rides home, she says.

This year, their auditions for drunken Shakespeare’s rendition of The Tempest had a huge turnout, so they actually upped their cast to 14 actors. Rather than having them bring a prepared monologue, which is a more traditional audition process, they had people do a group workshop. “We just get everyone’s vibes and how they feel. That’s more important than their acting ability, because the director can help someone do the acting better,” James says. Madriagg adds: “A big part for Shakespeare, too, is the community and working as a team, because if your stage mates are progressively getting drunk on stage, you need everyone to watch each other’s backs.”

Moab Brewery is sponsoring The Tempest’s three-weekend run, scheduled for 7 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays and 3 p.m. on Sundays from June 13-15, 20-22 and 27-29. “We’ll be selling beer to the patrons,” James says. “The donations will go back to the actors at the end of the night to pay them.” Tickets are still available on their website, madkingproductionslc.com, at $25 for general admission and $15 for students.

Other upcoming productions include Medea — which is about “a lady that goes crazy and kills babies,” says James — and We Are The Tigers, a murder-mystery cheerleader musical never before performed in Utah. This year, their goal is to produce four shows, growing to five next year. Eventually, they hope to make enough money from the shows to purchase a year’s worth of show rights (in order to release their lineup in advance).

At the end of the day, Mad King Productions isn’t about the money — in fact, the three don’t make any money from it. Each of them has regular nine-to-fives: James is a general contractor, Carleigh-Jo works in insurance and Madriaga is a master craftsman for Renaissance festivals. But through this return to theater, they’ve each found a family, a home away from home. “It’s our hobby, and it’s fun,” says James. “All the money goes right back into the theater so that we can just do more theater.”

Read more about local performance & theatre:
Play Review: The Antipodes
Forbidden Freedom: The Fetish Cabaret Turns Five