The opening production of Artistic Director Emma Rice’s inaugural winter season at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, Comus, begins its previews next week. It’s unsurprising then that rehearsals, for the warped and wonderful adaptation of the poem by John Milton, are well underway.
Deep in the woods, a Lady is lost, exhausted and separated from her brothers. After encountering a mysterious stranger – Comus, the God of Revelry – who promises refuge, she finds herself trapped in a magical palace, unable to move from a cursed chair. Tempted by pleasure, torn between wantonness and virtue, the Lady enters a warped world of wonder and horror, where gender, sexuality and morality prove fluid and unpredictable.
Milton’s Comus twists the conventions of the masque, leading the audience on an unpredictable and volatile journey. For more information and to book tickets to the show, visit the theatre’s website.