MIDWAY through our interview, Rebecca McGarvie calls out for an ice pack.

A box, covered in bright yellow and black tape, is quickly delivered by a colleague, looking every bit like apparatus for an emergency.

For a moment, I’m worried.

Over the years, I may have drawn the chagrin of people not wanting to answer my questions, but I’ve never gone as far as injure anyone.

Thankfully, upon opening the box, all is not what it seems.

The item is not in fact for medical use, but a tool that can be used to peel back the layers and unveil the drama surrounding Wicked.

The company, based in Darlington, provides specialist transport, crew and production services to the live entertainment and events industry.

From a unit in the town’s Blackett Road, it uses its expertise to help deliver theatre productions, concerts, festivals, exhibitions and conferences.

Founded more than ten years ago by owner and managing director Kevin Thwaites, the firm prides itself on being an unsung hero of the entertainment sector.

It works with venues such as the London Palladium, the Sunderland Empire, Aberdeen Music Hall and Plymouth’s Theatre Royal, and has carried out regional projects at Durham Cathedral, the Metro Radio Arena and Stockton’s Riverside.

Last year, its national theatre tours included Hot Flush and April in Paris, which both came to Darlington’s Civic Theatre, and Wicked will help bring shows such as Avenue Q and History Boys to the same venue this year.

It also sent plant operators, crew and transport to the Great North Run Million opening ceremony and supplied trucking for musician Frank Turner to festivals, such as Kendal Calling, in Cumbria.

It even helped move the BBC Blue Peter studio from London Television Centre to the University of Sunderland for students’ training after it was sold at auction when the corporation moved recording from London to Media City, in Salford, Greater Manchester.

It’s an abundance of work and helps to explain the company’s rapid expansion.

Established as Wicked Technical Services by Mr Thwaites, an experienced theatre technician and lighting specialist, Wicked as it stands today was spawned from his time on the road.

Having worked with several coaching companies, he began driving for production firms in 2008, leading him to buy Wicked’s first truck in 2010.

Later that year, it partnered a corporate events company to provide crew and transport for the 02 Connected World national conference tour, a job which opened the door to the plethora of new projects it oversees today.

When I visit, its base is a quite distance away from the perceived glamour of the entertainment world, with the outside temperature struggling to creep above freezing.

A bright blue truck is parked proudly outside its offices, and after meeting Rebecca McGarvie, the firm’s business manager, I am shown around the site, which includes more trucks, trailers and smaller vehicles.

Inside the building, parts of sets, including items from April in Paris, are now spending a spell in storage after their time under the spotlight.

Nearby, white dust sheets hide transportation equipment awaiting use and a section teems with various pieces of equipment, including rolls of tape that encompass the colour spectrum.

It may be a long way from the prestige surrounding theatre nights and sell-out concerts, but Ms McGarvie tells me it doesn’t matter in the slightest.

Getting the show on is key.

Ms McGarvie has vast experience of doing just that in the industry, having founded the former Darlington Arts Academy in 2008.

Wicked offered its support to the organisation, including creating a specially-built theatre at Darlington’s Hummersknott School when the academy gained the first youth theatre license to perform the musical Hairspray.

Mr Thwaites also joined its team of directors, and that close connection has now continued to reap rewards for Wicked.

She says: “We have more than ten years of experience and our expertise extends to all areas.

“Our production background gives us a unique insight, we know that no matter what, the show must go on and we’ll always go over and above.

“There’s a magic feeling, which is hard to describe if you haven’t done it.

“Standing in the wings just before the curtain goes up, there’s just a surge of excitement and adrenalin.

“People need to get away from everyday life now and again and absorb themselves in something else, such as the theatre and shows.

“For us, that means working to ensure performances take place.

“It’s not an easy job and you don’t do it for the glory.

“We are there to put other people in the limelight, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t incredibly exciting.”

The notion of staying in the shadows to help others takes me back to the incident with the ice pack.

Ice is actually an abbreviation for in case of emergency, and the cardboard package is stuffed with sweets, biscuits and drinks.

Wicked sends them out to crews it’s working with on tours, festivals and events, as well as friends in the industry, to offer reassurance and acknowledge their hard work and commitment.

“As a company, we know what we do well”, adds Ms McGarvie.

“We’re not trying to compete with the bigger organisations that have other various types of work, because they are doing that well.

“It’s less about the competitiveness and more about the people we work with.”

Those people form a vast list.

In 2012, the firm bought two 18-tonne trucks to cater for smaller tours and worked on national shows such as The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

However, the year also marked another significant chapter as Wicked started a relationship with Northern Stage on the tour of Close the Coalhouse Door.

It has since helped it on Catch-22, hauling a full-scale model of a World War Two bomber for the production that focuses on the trials and tribulations of Captain John Yossarian.

Lorne Campbell, Northern Stage artistic director, is unequivocal in his support for the company.

“Like all good partnerships, our relationship began with a simple transaction about transport and theatre”, he says.

“It has grown into a sustained and complex relationship through which Wicked have financially and logistically supported us in our work with young people in the North-East and took the very best art and artists from the North-East to the Edinburgh Fringe and beyond.”

Wicked’s fleet grew again in 2013 to help put on tours including September in the Rain, Rent, and Vampires Rock, and provide support for Leeds and Reading Festivals and V Festival.

It also transported installations for Durham Lumiere Festival, including the show’s Crown of Light, at the city’s cathedral.

Such successes have drawn serious admiration.

The company has been shortlisted in the favourite transport company category at Total Production International’s TPI Awards, which will take place on Monday, February 16.

Ms McGarvie is quick to excitedly tell me about the honour, which she says denounces common misconceptions about the region.

“We are really flying the flag for the North-East with TPI”, she says.

“To be successful, we’ve had to work that little bit harder because people assume London is the hive of activity for entertainment with the West End.

“We have more to offer than our southern counterparts and people have the false perception that to be successful in business you have to be suited and booted and have that separation from others.

“We’re different in that we are a close-knit bunch and we will continue to keep that at the heart of what we do.

“As long as we do that, the business will continue to grow; we will employ local people and will support more events.”