Vincent died in 1890, John died in 1980, both of gunshot wounds to the chest. But imagine what might have happened, had the two greatest artists of their time, met?

Vincent van Gogh was a nineteenth-century Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who is among the most famous and influential figures in the history of Western art. John Lennon was an English singer, songwriter, musician and peace activist who gained worldwide fame with The Beatles. Around five years before their deaths both men went through profound change.

Vincent van Gogh finally renounced his religious ambitions and began to paint in earnest, and despite great arguments with antagonist Paul Gaugin created his life’s great masterworks. John Lennon renounced sex, drugs and rock & roll and began five years seclusion as a family unit, and despite great arguments with antagonist Paul McCartney created a son, and what would be his last album.

This play takes place at their exact moment of crisis and decision, exploring love, death, art and legacy.

For Vincent it is February 1886. After a string of failed and wandering career attempts in art-dealership, teaching and theology and a series of ill-chosen relationships and scandals, Vincent returned in disgrace to his Dutch parents and a state of almost house-arrest. After the unexpected death of his protestant minister father and seeking both personal liberty and further opportunities in creating and selling his improving sketches and paintings, he has moved to the port city of Antwerp, Belgium.

Surviving on a stipend allowance sent infrequently from his brother, Vincent attends the free classes at the Royal Academy of Art, however the extreme differences in his appearance, style and working practices leave him mocked and derided by students and teachers alike. Impoverished and in ill-health, he loses himself in the dark temptations amongst the quays and wharfs of the city.

For John it is March 1974. With, in particular, the relentless success of Paul McCartney, John is the least successful of the post-Beatles Beatles. Because of his recent overly-political songs and albums his popularity, credibility and record sales have plummeted. Estranged from his second wife Yoko Ono and engaged in an ill-advised relationship with his secretary May Pang, John has been living a miserable and violent nocturnal life of substance abuse in Los Angeles for several months, making headlines for all the wrong reasons.

Jeered on by his riotous circle of famous hangers-on he is just one drink or drug mistake away from becoming the next tragic rock and roll statistic.

This is when Vincent met John…

The Everyman Theatre Cheltenham, in association with Worcester Theatres and Malvernbard