Webster's bloody Jacobean perspective collides with Graham Greene’s Brighton underworld in this intriguing reworking of The Duchess Of Malfi.

Originally put together by the Nightingale’s resident players Prodigal Theatre for the 2006 festival, the piece – which went on to win best show – is being revisited to mark the company’s tenth anniversary.

“By the time we knew the tickets were on sale they had sold out, so we never got it seen by a lot of people, which has been a bit of a sore tooth for us ever since,” says Alister O’Loughlin “It’s our biggest piece and we think it could tour and have a longer life – I’m quite convinced it’s far better than it was in 2006.”

With an unusual ratio of performers to audience – 15 actors and no more than 30 people watching – Ten Thousand Several Doors transfers the treachery of Webster’s opulent court to 1950s Brighton, but aims to maintain the intimacy of its original Jacobean context.

“The thing about Jacobean tragedy is that, generally, it’s done badly,” says O’Loughlin. “The writing intended a very intimate relationship with the audience, but in this day and age it’s very difficult in a big playhouse to be true to that. “I think what we are working towards is bringing back that relationship with the audience. Which would you prefer as an audience: sitting in the theatre completely anonymous, or do you want an actor to look you in the eye?”

Prodigal’s production also spills out into the street, as the Duchess tries to escape with her husband, married in secret, pursued by her murderous brothers.

“We are very fortunate with the Nightingale in that we overlook a train station – what better way to stage an attempted escape than to have them try to get on a train?

“The audience witnesses the action from the theatre, and the relationship changes; you’re more of a voyeur.”

Audience response has also informed the company’s decision to relocate the story to seedy, post-war Brighton.

“The language is archaic, so if you do a modern-dress version, with people in contemporary clothing but speaking Jacobean English, nobody buys it – it doesn’t make sense,” explains O’Loughlin. “You have to set the piece far enough back in time that people were a bit different to the way they are now. Even though it’s only 50 years back, we believe and accept it.”

He says the setting also gives Webster’s brooding sense of brutality space to breathe, along with the era’s pronounced misogynistic streak.

“Webster’s world is completely dominated by men and it’s completely hierarchical in that everyone knows their place. When you get to the fifth act and everyone kills each other, you have to set up a reality where that could happen from the very start of the play.

“So there was no better setting than a gangster family.”

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