Sedos' THE DEVILS to Open Next Month at the Bridewell Theatre

Sedos, the City of London's premier amateur theatre company, opens its 2015 season next month with a production of The Devils at the company's resident home, the Bridewell Theatre, from 17 - 21 March.

Originally commissioned by Sir Peter Hall for the Royal Shakespeare Company in 1960 and based on Aldous Huxley's book 'The Devils of Loudun', the story of demonic possession and mass hysteria was famously re-imagined by Ken Russell in the cult controversial 1971 movie 'The Devils', starring Oliver Reed and Vanessa Redgrave.

Director Nick Mouton said: "It has been interesting to draw the parallels between the historical background of the play and modern life, looking at actions that some members of society thought appropriate at the time, but which have since been deemed as miscarriages of justice.

"As with Aldous Huxley's book, the play's plot abstractly relates to the witch-trial mentality of the McCarthy hearings of the early 1950s with false accusations and the 'guilty until you confess' approach to justice. It looks at how mob-mentality can be easily manipulated and can never be relied upon as an ally."

The play incorporates four newly written choral pieces which are sung by the cast. Using close harmony to create an ethereal atmosphere and establish the liturgy as part of the story, the music aims to convey the initial peace and subsequent anguish and to build the tension of the plot.

The play tells the story of Father Urbain Grandier, a young, educated, charming priest. People from around the country are drawn to the small city of Loudun to hear him speak. When he turns down the position of head priest at St Ursula's Convent, the convent's prioress takes umbrage, avenging herself by claiming possession by devils set upon her by Grandier. The hysteria becomes widespread, letting Grandier's enemies make an example of him by putting him to trial for consorting with the Devil.

The source material, Aldous Huxley's book 'The Devils of Loudun', centres on the historical narrative of supposed demonic possession, religious fanaticism, sexual repression and mass hysteria surrounding unexplained events in 17th century France. The events led to several public exorcisms, as well as executions by burning.

Tickets: sedos.co.uk.

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