Hello! My name is Ahmed Abdullahi Gallab and I'm the composer of The Enormous Crocodile

About playing music
I predominately play and compose music outside of musical theatre with my band, Sinkane. I am a multi-instrumentalist, but my favourite thing is songwriting. The music I make is funky, rock, kind of indie-rock, funk, reggae and African influences.

About working on the show
First and foremost, this was my favourite Roald Dahl book as a kid. I remember reading it all the time – it was so fun. And I think it’s really fun to create stories for children that are a bit scary in a playful way. It’s been a dream come true to be honest. I grew up on a healthy dose of Dahl and have always wanted to dive into this kind of thing.

Favourite song
Asking about my favourite song is like asking about my favourite child! I have composed them all so it’s kind of hard. It changes every week. Right now, it’s the opening number of the show. I like that one because it really goes somewhere. I also love “Brave”; that song has been my biggest breakthrough in writing in the last five years of working on this show. It’s one of those bangers that you can’t deny. And “Sizzled” is such a great way of ending the show. It has all my favourite elements of African music and pop music fused into one.

About the inspirations for the music
I wanted everything to be very immediate and powerful, so I drew inspiration from a lot of African music and funk. Rhythm was a very important thing that had to be imbued in every single song; it had to be infectious, it had to make you dance, it had to make you move. The melodies also really had to grab you. African music and funk have a lot of melodies that make your heart sing and make you want to get up.

About working with the team
What I have found really joyful about working on this project is how collaborative it is. All our voices are appreciated by everyone else. It’s created such a special bond; it’s beyond all of us.

If I was the Enormous Crocodile…
I did a lot of work singing the demos before we brought the songs to the actors, so I really got to know the character of the Enormous Crocodile. One of my favourite lines is: ‘I could eat all day; you could find me at the child buffet,’ and I think a child buffet would be what I would want to eat if I was him! I am really into food, so I couldn’t choose just one cuisine. I don’t know If I’d be able to choose one kind of child – maybe a cornucopia of children from different parts of the world!
On a slightly more serious note, I love Sudanese food (I’m Sudanese), so I need a healthy dose of that. Food is a gateway into culture.

Photograph: Manuel Harlan