A darkly fascinating tale of male violence, guilt and privilege, “Jekyll and Hyde” – but as you have never read, seen or heard it before – comes to the Crescent Theatre Birmingham, opening on Saturday 8th February and running until the 15th. Stunningly theatrical, Neil Bartlett’s hugely imaginative and inventive take on the infamous tale, which even includes the equivalent of a male chorus, puts the spotlight piercingly on the misogynistic world of Victorian male privilege which enabled this brutal double life to flourish.
Where the original Robert Louis Stevenson novel is almost exclusively male in its focus, Bartlett brings women to the fore. The story is driven by Dr. Stephenson (Amanda Nickless) and her actions as she seeks to uncover the truth behind the mysterious ape-like creature terrorising the streets of Victorian London and its connection to the well-respected and well-connected Dr. Jekyll (Sam Jackson). Bartlett’s character is loosely based on Elizabeth Garrett Anderson, the first female physician and surgeon in the UK. Joined by the Matron (Paula Snow) and the street girl Esther (Phoebe Benson), they form a powerful trio determined not just to overcome the barriers thrown up by the men in tracking down the perpetrator, but to be a force in their own right – to be heard loud and clear.
Though there are many facets to Bartlett’s beautifully crafted work, Paula Snow highlights one key theme in it. “It just makes you aware of the prejudice of those professions at that time and which, in my opinion, still haven’t gone away.” Amanda Nickless picks that up: “If you look at the world at the moment, it does feel like a boys’ club – especially with the people in power”. The highest impact on Phoebe Benson however has been the revelation that girls as young as 10 were forced into prostitution. She says, “When we figured that out, it broke our hearts”.
Steve Davis, Rob Laird, Elliott McDowell, Stephen Message and Brian Wilson form Bartlett’s quasi Greek Chorus, “the Gentlemen”, a wonderfully theatrical device which adds texture and richness and keeps the play’s high energy driving along with even more power. They cover everything from Dr.Jekyll’s former schoolmates to his closest current associates. Bound by a code to protect their own, they close ranks and seek to dissuade anyone who might seek to question or suspect Jekyll.
Jekyll is played by Sam Jackson, who also of course plays Mr. Hyde, in a role that is not only high in emotion but also very demanding physically – and quirky. To say that he has a complex character would be an understatement. As Sam Jacklon explains: “Compared to the other ‘Gentlemen’, he is slightly less aware of the gender dynamics of the play. He has a singleness of mind; he wants to do what he wants to do. Though he’s not thinking that he wants to be hurtful to women, he simply doesn’t care – and in some ways that’s more insidious.”
Mysterious, gripping and entertaining, this is thought-provoking gothic that is both Victorian and bang up-to-date, and the Crescent Theatre is really excited to bring this play to Birmingham for the first time. “Jekyll and Hyde” runs at the Crescent Theatre, Birmingham, from 8th-15th February. Tickets are on sale now at www.crescent-theatre.co.uk or call our Box Office on 0121 643 5858 (concessions are available).