Preview: Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, Arnos Vale Cemetery

Returning for their fourth year following three sell-out productions of classics from the gothic horror genre (last year’s Frankenstein [review], The Turn of the Screw from 2017 [review], and 2015’s Dracula [review]), Bristol’s Red Rope Theatre return this month to the Anglican Chapel in Arnos Vale Cemetery with another darkly epic misadventure.

Adapted by award-winning writer Matt Grinter from Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1886 gothic novella, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a dark psychological thriller filled with repression, liberation, addiction and malice.

In an attempt to free his darker nature without suffering the consequences and remain the respectable man that society thinks he is, Dr Jekyll breaks through the laws of nature with devastating consequences. It’s a story of the human condition, of identity and of friendship, and it asks: how far is one man willing to go to find his true self…?

We caught up with Matt and director Rebecca Robson.

Why did you choose to bring Jekyll and Hyde to Arnos Vale Cemetery? What is it about the staging and the venue?
Matt: We have been bringing gothic horrors to Arnos Vale since 2015 – this will be our fourth production there, and the second that I have adapted. Arnos Vale have such a wonderfully progressive and fun approach to their own identity: the way they tackle the difficult and challenging subject of death, and the fear of death, is unique and refreshing.

Rehearsals for Red Rope Theatre’s ‘Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’, which will be performed at Arnos Vale Cemetery this autumn

Our productions have always tried to have the same feel: we’ve hoped to create something bold and entertaining that also looks at aspects of the world that aren’t necessarily black and white. Arnos Vale is also magical and beautiful, filled with both life and death, natural and man-made, ancient and modern. These contrasts make it a perfect backdrop for Jekyll and Hyde.

The production will be performed inside the atmospheric Anglican Chapel at Arnos Vale

There’s also the simple fact that there’s nothing cooler than watching something scary in a graveyard (particularly when there’s a functioning bar!).

Why do you think the Jekyll and Hyde story is still so powerful today?
Matt: I could have written four or five different adaptations of Jekyll and Hyde, it is a story so rich and ripe for interpretation that when I was reading it there were so many different avenues I wanted to explore. There are so many things that speak to a modern audience – about identity, privacy, what constitutes our sense of self. The idea that, in order to exist in any useful form within his society, there are parts of himself that Doctor Jekyll needs to hide from the rest of the world, or at least that the person that he presents himself to be is only an edited version of himself, is something that we see on a monumental scale today.

The Jekyll and Hyde story is echoed in social media, mental health and addiction, and in so many of the discussions around being a person living in the modern world. For us, because of what we create with Arnos Vale, the two most important elements to keep in mind are staying true to the book, and creating a horror story that must both scare and challenge its audience. Sci-fi and horror have always been vehicles through which we investigate the largest philosophical questions – and there aren’t many bigger than ‘who are we?’.

Rebecca: Jekyll and Hyde is one of my favourite books, I was really struck by it when I first read it and it really imprinted itself on my mind. It carries an enormous amount of power and I think that is because, although fantastical, it connects deeply with the human experience.

Red Rope’s Frankenstein, staged at the Anglican Chapel last year. The production captured the novel’s “atmosphere of cold, creeping dread and inescapable bleakness”, said our reviewer

Jekyll is not unique in burying parts of himself in order to conform to people’s expectations or to succeed in society: I think we all do it to a greater or lesser extent. I’m certain if there were no consequences to our actions many of us would behave very differently. A desire for personal freedom and an ability to imprison ourselves is inherent in all of us, and can create deep conflict, which happens for Dr Jekyll in the extreme. The story asks: who, really, are we? What would we do if we could do whatever we wanted without anyone knowing it was us?

It’s also the most believable gothic horror story: there are no ghosts, monsters or vampires, just a man who changes his form to live a second life. And although science hasn’t managed to replicate Jekyll’s ability (as far as I know), people can change their appearance and/or personality, and become unrecognisable in some cases. I’ve no doubt there are plenty of Jekyll and Hydes out there…

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is at the Anglican Chapel, Arnos Vale Cemetery from Nov 7-16. Ages 14+. For more info, visit www.redropetheatre.co.uk/productions

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