Kip Williams on adapting Gothic fiction for the stage

Estate summary

Sarah Hemming interviews Kip Williams as he prepares Dracula with Cynthia Erivo, placing the production alongside his adaptations of The Picture of Dorian Gray and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Williams discusses the continuing power of these nineteenth-century stories and their relevance to contemporary anxieties about identity and technology. His use of cameras and screens is explored as a way of examining how people construct and perceive themselves, rather than simply adding cinematic decoration to a play. The article describes the precision required when one performer interacts with filmed versions of herself and moves between numerous roles. It also gives attention to rehearsal, collaboration and the technicians whose contribution makes the apparent solo performance possible. This provides a creative perspective on the production, explaining the director’s intentions and working methods before audiences and critics assessed the finished show.

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