Milton Keynes: Lockdown-written musical A World Divided to be staged

Christopher Edwards wrote A World Divided over six months in 2020

A man who wrote a musical to help his mental health during Covid lockdowns is preparing for it to be staged.

Christopher Edwards, 35, from Newport Pagnell in Buckinghamshire, wrote A World Divided, about a post-apocalyptic world, over six months in 2020.

It is being staged at the Milton Keynes Theatre this month, followed by a performance at Aylesbury's Waterside Theatre in May.

Edwards said lockdown had scared him, so "having this to focus on was good".

Inspired by concept albums such as War of the Worlds, the composer, who grew up Milton Keynes and now runs a music school, first had the idea for the show when there was a threat of war from North Korea in 2011.

But it was not until a composer friend died from Covid "without doing what he wanted", coupled with his own mental health struggles, that he was able to get it all down on paper.

"I didn't think I was good enough but hearing that you could just lose your chance, just like that, spurred me on," he said.

A World Divided has its premiere at the Milton Keynes Theatre in April

The story itself discusses mental health through the main character, Sarabande. She navigates a ravaged landscape past a terrifying figure that haunts her nightmares to try to stop a war that threatens to destroy what is left of the world.

"The main character is a fearful, innocent individual with a fear about something that could happen," said Edwards.

"I imagined her on a journey of being frightened and turning that into bravery - and then the other characters came and the story kind of wrote itself.

"It's a 'feel the fear and do it anyway' kind of character - in the end, she can win."

Other characters represent other parts of the mind, with each identified by a different style of music, such as Celtic, industrial, jazz and rock.

Sarabande is a "feel the fear and do it anyway" kind of character, says Edwards

Edwards said he had the ideas for the musical in his head - with lyrics and chords written on scraps of paper - but the pandemic gave him the push he needed.

"Lockdown scared me because I struggle with my mental health," he said.

"I was really worried about being isolated and it was a frightening time, so having this to focus on was good, I could hide for a while and lose myself in it."

A World Divided has been nearly three years in the making

Just shy of three years in development, he accepts he has been lucky to get the musical on to a stage.

A pupil at his music school the Instrument Factory asked to take the script away, and shortly afterwards her father contacted Edwards to offer to fund it.

"I got a phone call about it but I hung up on him because I thought it was a joke," Edwards said. "Then the man came in with his daughter and asked for a chat.

"It is incredible, I try and keep grounded. I feel very proud and grateful to be doing it with my friends and family and we've developed a bigger family."

After the Milton Keynes performances, Edwards' plans include a tour for 2024 - and he is hoping to end up at the London Palladium.

"Nothing is impossible. I'm already in communication with them... we want to leave our mark," he added.