I ask O'Kane why he has chosen the Caretaker as the first play. He tells me that his interest lies in its many contemporary resonances, ‘It deals with how we get on with different nationalities, how we relate to our family, how we see ourselves in our particular place in society, and most importantly how vulnerable we are without support.’ Furthermore, it had a practical purpose as a first play for the company - its limited cast allowing him to establish a small group of actors to form the basis of the rep company. ‘The next step’, I am told, ‘is to add three female actresses in order to produce The Bear.’ The Caretaker has only three characters: Aston, who has a history of mental illness, his brother Mick, and the tramp Davies who is initially invited into Aston’s home. Sean is playing Davies and I ask him how he sees him. ‘The world has given up on him but he refuses to give up on the world - he knows no gratitude, only exploitation.’ Does he have any redemptive qualities? ‘Yes’, he declares, firmly, ‘he knows the cycle of life will never change, but he has a great sense of resignation which overcomes anger.’

Perhaps it was O’Kane’s brush with death in 2002 that has made him so single-minded in his ambitions for the Company. ‘There is a problem in Lewes’, he finishes solemnly, ‘both audience and talent go elsewhere. want to unify them.’ ER