Eyestrings Theatre Company Presents THE DUCHESS OF MALFI, Now thru Sept 8

Formed in 2008 by Cheek by Jowl's Associate Director Owen Horsley, Eyestrings Theatre Company is committed to producing courageous and bold interpretations of the classics. The Arts Council-funded company premieres its new production of Webster's The Duchess of Malfi at the Burton Taylor Studio, Oxford tonight, 5 – 8th September followed by a run at The White Bear Theatre, London 11th – 30th September.

In a new stripped back vision, Director Horsley reveals the skull beneath the skin of Webster's brutal tragedy. A woman pays the price for daring to transgress her social status. A powerful family is destroyed by passion, envy and cruelty. Cutting to the heart of the text, Eyestrings' staging unleashes the brutal, beautiful and visceral nature of this harrowing tragedy.

With just seven actors, six chairs and a gramophone Eyestrings confront the themes of morality, class and sex head on. The company creates simple stark images that encourage the audience to re-open their eyes in order to experience what they place as the most important function of the theatre: empathy.

Passionate about touring classical work around the UK, the two short runs in Oxford and London this autumn are a precursor to Eyestrings' tour of the production in 2013. Director, Owen Horsley said "The Duchess of Malfi is one of the finest works of its era and I love the challenge of taking on such a raw tragedy. The Burton Taylor Studio offers a perfect classical setting for the play and offers a great opportunity for us to launch Eyestrings as a touring company before bringing it to The White Bear for a longer run."

As well as his work as an Associate Director of Cheek by Jowl during the past six years, Horsley has directed work at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and in Madrid and at the Almagro Festival in La Mancha. He has also direcTed Eyestrings' previous productions: Askew's In Bed with Messalina at the Courtyard Theatre and Marlowe's Edward II at St Andrews Crypt.

The Duchess of Malfi brings together a team of emerging theatre professionals. The production is designed by Simon Anthony Wells, who is a regular assistant to Peter Macintosh and Christopher Oram, and has worked at The Almeida, ENO and Liverpool Playhouse. Sound Design is by Helen Atkinson, whose work includes A Disappearing Number for Complicite and Enda Walsh's Misterman (National and off-Broadway).

The ensemble cast includes Kelly Hotten, Orlando James and Edmund Wiseman who between them have worked for Cheek by Jowl, Manchester Royal Exchange, Almeida and in the West End.

Press Night will be held on Wednesday 12th September at 7.30pm.

 

 

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