Robert Dennis Madge is a

performer The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which are the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. Perfor ...

born in

Coventry Coventry ( or ) is a city in the West Midlands, England. It is on the River Sherbourne. Coventry has been a large settlement for centuries, although it was not founded and given its city status until the Middle Ages. The city is governed b ...

. Robert attended Sylvia Young Theatre School from 2007–2012. From 2012–2014, they studied Drama at Ashbourne College. In 2017, Robert graduated from the University of Warwick, where they read English Literature and was president of Music Theatre Warwick. Robert has played various roles on the West End, as well as other theatres in the United Kingdom, as well as performing the lead role of Nobody Owens in HarperAudio's full-cast edition of The Graveyard Book.

Career

Madge discovered their love for performing at a young age and made their professional debut at the age of 9, when they starred as Michael Banks in the Original West End production of George Stiles and

Anthony Drewe Anthony Drewe is a British lyricist and book writer for Broadway and West End musicals. He is best known for his collaborations with George Stiles. Education He was educated at Maidstone Grammar School between 1974–1980. He read Zoology at ...

Mary Poppins It may refer to: * ''Mary Poppins'' (book series), the original 1934–1988 children's fantasy novels that introduced the character. * Mary Poppins (character), the nanny with magical powers. * ''Mary Poppins'' (film), a 1964 Disney film star ...

at the Prince Edward Theatre from 2005 to 2007. They then landed the role of the

Artful Dodger Jack Dawkins, better known as the Artful Dodger, is a character in Charles Dickens's 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist''. The Dodger is a pickpocket, so called for his skill and cunning in that occupation. He is the leader of the gang of child criminal ...

in the West End revival of

Oliver! ''Oliver!'' is a Coming-of-age story, coming-of-age Musical theatre, stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel ''Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre ...

, shortly followed by their acclaimed performance as

Gavroche Gavroche () is a fictional character in the 1862 novel ''Les Misérables'' by Victor Hugo. He is a boy who lives on the streets of Paris. His name has become a synonym for an urchin or street child. Gavroche plays a short yet significant role i ...

Les Misérables ''Les Misérables'' ( , ) is a French historical novel by Victor Hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. In the English-speaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its origin ...

at the Barbican Theatre as well as getting the opportunity to perform the role in the 2010 Les Misérables: 25th Anniversary Concert. Having played three of the highest profile child roles within the

Musical Theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

industry, Madge was selected to play Reginald in the original cast of Matilda the Musical between 2010 and 2011. This meant that by the age of 15, Madge had already performed in four West End shows and was an established name within the theatre world. Madge played their first adult role in the

UK and Ireland tour, playing the role of student, Jean Prouvaire. This however was cut short due to the

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

pandemic. In August 2021, Madge began touring as Norton the fish in

Bedknobs and Broomsticks ''Bedknobs and Broomsticks'' is a 1971 American live-action animated musical fantasy film directed by Robert Stevenson and produced by Bill Walsh for Walt Disney Productions. It is loosely based upon the books '' The Magic Bedknob; or, How t ...

, which premiered at the Theatre Royal in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

. They followed this with a month's run at

The Other Palace The Other Palace is a theatre in London's Off West End which opened on 18 September 2012 as the St. James Theatre. It features a 312-seat main theatre and a 120-seat studio theatre. It was built on the site of the former Westminster Theatre, w ...

, starring in a new musical, 'Millenials: A Pop Song Cycle', in July 2022.

''My Son's a Queer But What Can You Do?''

''My Son's a Queer But What Can You Do?'' is a coming of age, autobiographical story of Madge when they were a child attempting to stage a full-blown one-person

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

show in their home; it also explores Madge's uplifting and inspiring discovery that they are non-binary. They first performed the show at the Turbine Theatre in June 2021, then a revival at the

Edinburgh Fringe Festival The Edinburgh Festival Fringe (also referred to as The Fringe, Edinburgh Fringe, or Edinburgh Fringe Festival) is the world's largest arts and media festival, which in 2019 spanned 25 days and featured more than 59,600 performances of 3,841 dif ...

in August 2022. The show transferred to the

Garrick Theatre The Garrick Theatre is a West End theatre, located in Charing Cross Road, in the City of Westminster, named after the stage actor David Garrick. It opened in 1889 with ''The Profligate'', a play by Arthur Wing Pinero, and another Pinero play, ' ...

in October 2022.

Stage credits

Personal Life

Madge is non-binary.

References

External links

*
Robert Madge on TwitterRobert Madge on Instagram
{{DEFAULTSORT:Madge, Robert 1996 births Living people Alumni of the Sylvia Young Theatre School People from Warwickshire English child actors English stage actors English television actors British non-binary actors