Jekyll and Hyde
Alhambra Theatre, Bradford/Touring

THE GOTHIC elements of The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde make it easy to parody. But that would do a disservice to Robert Louis Stevenson’s 1886 novella, which raises questions about human nature that still have contemporary resonance.

David Edgar’s adaptation, first staged in 1991, largely ignores those possibilities and that's reflected in a Kate Saxon production lacking subtlety, imagination or clear direction. Labouring over the psychological aspect of the narrative, a reference to dualism is crow-barred into every scene, while a back story about Dr Jekyll’s relationship with his father provides a half-formed Freudian rationale for his scientific endeavours.

The introduction of female characters would perhaps be noteworthy if they were depicted as anything other than victims. But the men are portrayed equally one-dimensionally, with Sam Cox as Poole, the butler, a restrained Basil Fawlty and Ben Jones as Dr Lanyon, a longtime friend, the epitome of the Victorian stiff upper lip. He's remarkably unperturbed when he witnesses Jekyll's transformation.