The Poison Maker
From 31st January to 18th February 2006 I played Margaret Tegg in the Alchemy Theatre Company’s production of ‘The Poison Maker’. Performed at the Old Red Lion Theatre in Islington and based on a true story, it was a dark yet comic period piece which involved two families emotionally bound together by unrequited love. It was the world premiere of this gothic play by Hampstead-based writer John Symonds, who is best known for his critically acclaimed biography of Aleister Crowley; ‘The Great Beast’.
This production had its fair share of set-backs, with last minute cast-changes and cuts, plus the set-designer having concussion at the get-in! But these problems didn’t distract from my enjoyment of playing Margaret. The lynch-pin of her family with very solid views on morality, she tries her best to maintain normality as her world gets turned upside-down by the appearance of her half-brother. She loves her family passionately, but cannot express it without alienating them, so finds herself always facing loneliness.
‘Curious and engaging…’
THE STAGE
‘Funny, absorbing…fascinating’
THE CAMDEN NEW JOURNAL
‘This anarchic comedy of the Romantic (rather than romantic) persuasion carries echoes of Cocteau and Poe and creates a quite wonderful picture of a secretly perverse London of the early 1900s’
TIME OUT
‘Some fine witty moments… never loses interest’
THE EVENING STANDARD
‘A captivating play’
THE LONDON THEATRE REVIEW