William Inge’s drama The Dark at the Top of the Stairs which “hasn’t been seen in England for over a generation” starts a run at Coventry’s Belgrade this week.
Inge dedicated the play to his friend and contemporary Tennessee Williams. It won the Tony Award for best play in 1957.
Set in Oklahoma in the early 1920s, The Dark at the top of the Stairs follows the trials and tribulations of the Flood family as they are forced to face their fears and accept that the world they know is changing forever.
Jenny-May Darcy, who plays Flirt, started her career as a member of the Belgrade Youth Theatre when she was 11.
She trained at the Courtyard Theatre and since graduating last year she’s worked on television commercials, music videos and toured Italy playing Maid Marian in Robin vs Sheriff.
She commented, "The Belgrade was always a huge part of my life. I'm thrilled to land this role in The Dark at the Top of the Stairs, and to perform it at the Belgrade is the icing on the cake.
“It feels like I’ve returned to my roots—to the place that first inspired me to want to act more than a decade ago."
Benjamin Durber who plays Punky Givens was a member of the Belgrade’s Senior Youth Theatre and later the Young Company.
Joining them onstage are Andrew Whipp who plays travelling salesman and man of the house Rubin; Caroline Faber who plays his wife Cora; Olivia Vinall as their shy daughter Reenie; Philip Labey as their young, Hollywood-obsessed son Sonny; Jessica Martin as Cora’s sister Lottie; Graham Vanas as her husband Morris; and Asher Amis as Sammy.
The Dark at the Top of the Stairs runs in the Belgrade’s B2 auditorium from Saturday (20 October) until Saturday, 10 November.