Main content

'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time' - the relationship between Christopher and Siobhan

An exploration into the relationship between Christopher Boone and his teacher, Siobhan through interviews with the actors and footage from the National Theatre production.

An exploration into the relationship between Christopher Boone and his teacher, Siobhan, played by Niamh Cusack in the National Theatre’s production of 'The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time'. The relationship between Christopher and Siobhan is explained and the structure is explored. Siobhan only appears in the story after Christopher’s Mum’s supposed death. Siobhan has to be emotionally removed from Christopher to be an effective teacher. She talks to him like an adult. The different sides of Siobhan’s character are explored. At some points in the play, we see Siobhan and Christopher interacting in a scene. At other points in the play, Siobhan becomes the narrator by reading out extracts from Christopher’s book. Niamh Cusack explains that at times, Siobhan ‘becomes’ Christopher. Niamh Cusack explains that Siobhan can be seen as Christopher’s soul and his imagination. The challenges for the actor playing Siobhan are explored – playing the different aspects of her character.

Release date:

Duration:

3 minutes