Gaslight, the modern adaptation of the 1940’s suspenseful thriller by Patrick Hamilton, stars NIDA alumni Toby Schmitz (Acting, 1999) and Kate Fitzpatrick (Acting, 1967), and is Directed by Lee Lewis OAM (Directing, 2003).
They are joined by fellow alumni Executive Producer, Ben Finn (Cultural Leadership, 2023), Scenic and Costume Designer, Renee Mulder (Design, 2008), Stage Manager, Rebecca Poulter (Technical Theatre and Stage Management, 2009), Head of Lighting, Isabella Thompson (Technical Theatre and Stage Management, 2022) and Standby, Julian Curtis (Acting, 2008).
The cast and creatives are effusive in their praise for one another, Kate Fitzpatrick said, ‘one of the most exciting things about doing this play is working with actors and a director that I really admire.’ Director Lee Lewis OAM said, ‘when people hear that Kate Fitzpatrick is in the show the response has been electric and Toby Schmitz is one of Australia’s great theatre actors,’ while the show’s Designer Renee Mulder described the process of making Gaslight as ‘collaborative’.
The highly anticipated play, coming to the Roslyn Packer Theatre this August, remains compellingly relevant today, as the original source of the term ‘gaslighting’.
Gaslight follows Bella Manningham, a young wife who seemingly has it all – a nice home and a comfortable upper-middle-class life. Her housekeepers, Elizabeth and Nancy, attend to her and help run the household. Her husband, Jack, appears attentive and loving. So why is Bella on edge? As we learn more about the Manningham household, it becomes clear that something is amiss. Despite his doting appearance, Jack is hiding something – he keeps disappearing in the evenings, and after he leaves, Bella hears strange sounds in the house. The gas lights dim for no apparent reason. Is Bella losing her grip on reality? Or is something more sinister afoot?
21 August – 15 September Roslyn Packer Theatre, Sydney.
Tickets are on sale now.
Header: Production Image from Gaslight directed by Lee Lewis OAM (Directing 2003) and starring Toby Schmitz (Acting 1999). Photo by Brett Boardman.
