EDINBURGH 2016: BWW Q&A - Darktales

BWW speaks to Tim Arthur about his (quite frankly, terrifying-sounding) 2016 Edinburgh Fringe thriller/horror show Darktales.

Tell us a bit about Darktales

Darktales is a psychological horror thriller. I sort of don't want to give too much away because I want people to discover it for themselves, but I also want people to book tickets so I'd better whet their appetite a bit. Set in an Edinburgh University, a lecturer and an ex-student are reunited. They share a secret. One of them has done something terrible. One of them has set an elaborate trap for the other. One of them is there to silence the only person who knows about his crime. It's a story about jealousy, obsession and madness. Nothing is as it appears.

Why bring it back to Edinburgh after 21 years?

When I first wrote Darktales I was the age of the younger character in the play. Now I'm the age of the older character. I went back and rewrote it from scratch with 21 years' worth of experience and a MacBook Air - neither of which I had back then. I love this story and it's always stayed with me - I'd say it had haunted me, but I'm not going to and you can't make me. I really wanted to see it again. I wanted to reimagine it. It's not very often you get the chance to go back and re-examine and rework things later in life, making them new and timely again. It was a lot of fun to do. Ultimately, it's an immersive dark ride of show. The lights go down and 70 minutes later you'll be glad the courtyard is full of happy laughing people and the bars are still serving stiff drinks.

Who would you recommend comes to see Darktales?

I'd recommend it to anyone who likes theatre that grabs you by the scruff of the neck and gives you a good shaking. Anyone who likes watching thrillers - think True Detective meets The Killing. I mean it's literally nothing like either of those two... but I really like them so I thought I'd throw them in... I mean it's a little like them in as much as there's a murder that needs to be solved but other than that there's not much in common... but if you're the kind of person that like Scandi thrillers or Matthew McConaughey playing Detective Rust Cohle I reckon you'll probably like Darktales. If you don't know either of those references then it's Agatha Christie meets Hunter S Thompson... again, it's not really anything like that. Basically, if you want to see a genuinely fun piece of theatre that'll make you laugh at one moment and then jump the next then this is the one for you. It's not worthy or deep. It's a piece of pure entertainment, a modern penny dreadful - not the TV series, the Victorian periodicals obviously.

..and who would you recommend doesn't come to see it?

It's not for kids. If I had to put an age certificate on it I'd say it's a 15. It's probably not for those of nervous disposition either, but it's just a play ultimately so how scary could it be? I mean nobody actually dies. Also I'd really like to keep the ending a secret, so if you're a massive blabbermouth it's probably not for you either. I mean do come obviously, just try and keep your trap shut about who does what to who and when. I wanted to have that as our hashtag - Harry Potter and the Cursed Child had #keepthesecrets, I wanted #just-try-and-keep-your-trap-shut-about-who-does-what-to-who-and-when, but the producers said that was too long for a badge.

What sets Darktales apart from the thousands of other shows at the festival?

Well, it's not a stand-up comedian standing there with a microphone telling jokes for a start. I love Edinburgh and there will be a load of amazing shows on by some brilliant writers, directors and actors. This one will be one of those ones. Apart from the fact that the play itself is wonderfully creepy and doesn't take itself too seriously, our cast is fantastic (you'll have seen them on the telly and everything), the director has won an Olivier Award so you know he's good, the set is ridiculously extravagant (I have no idea how we're meant to get it on and off stage between shows), the backstage crew are some of the best in the country (they never get a shoutout but without them there is no show), and the music is so good I keep listening to it at home. It's a romp of show. Give it a go.

Timings and ticket information for Darktales are available on the edfringe website.

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