Award winning theatre company, Organised Chaos Productions, bring their latest collaboration of the North West's finest new and emerging talent to the Kings Arms this week with Old Ground, which pin-points a specific moment in the horrific story of the Moors Murderers.
Even now, decades later, with the perpetrators deceased, it is still a highly emotive and uneasy subject matter...
"Attempting to bring the story of one of Manchester's darkest legacies to the stage was not an easy decision, and one I have carefully considered for a number of years" explains writer Lee Joseph "It jars so vehemently with everything else that is normally celebrated and associated with our city..."
Old Ground comes to Salford from 28th September until 8th October, and provides a hard-hitting piece of theatre. It offers an accurate depiction of a dark twist in the case of Ian Brady and Myra Hindley, years after the disturbing events.
The play focuses on the eighties, with Hindley and Brady both incarcerated, and looks at Hindley's disturbing attempt to deny involvement in the gruesome crimes, and her desperate bid for freedom is put under close scrutiny. It takes up this awkward period of British history and carefully restores it.
I ask actor Michael Whitaker (Ian Brady) about the difficulties of portraying an infamous murderer...
"For myself, the focus of building any character is to try to find any area that I can relate to them" he says "In some cases it's easier when the character is so similar to myself, and in cases like this, it requires a lot more searching to find the initial 'hooks'.
"I always tend to build a character in different stages" he adds "Personally, the most effective way to build and get comfortable within such a character is to have a rehearsal room that feels safe, supportive and creatively vibrant. I've been fortunate to be working with a fantastic director, Neil Bell, and actress, Eve Burley, with whom I've felt comfortable in exploring such dark and horrific themes."
Although the story of the crimes still feels painfully relevant, there has always been a dark fascination with the case. Many books and TV shows have examined the Moors Murders in great detail and the awful legacy still has an echo that stretches way beyond the north of England. Lee Joseph elaborates on the interest in the unpalatable...
"I believe there to be no such thing as 'morbid fascination'" he explains "Rather, more an interest in the highly unlikely a curiosity in the unexplainable, the baffling and the absolute bizarre and should never be deemed 'unhealthy', or 'shameful'. Fact is often stranger than fiction and many millions of people have contributed to internet viewing-figures; some of the highest being footage of human atrocities such as 9/11 or the holocaust for example, not to mention documentations of true crimes."
Lee understands the importance of ensuring that the facts are accurately presented and that the play examines the issues with great care. Old Ground manages to avoid the pitfalls of glorifying crime and has the victims at its very core. It seems that this was one of the driving forces behind the script, as Lee confirms:
"To remember only the names and faces of the two perpetrators in this story is to only pick at the old, septic wounds and is, ultimately, to allow their crimes to be committed over and over again" he says "The plight of the two mothers in this particular period of the story I have chosen to convey is my true fascination. For they prove that hope, above all else, can, and should, never be diminished, no matter how despairing and catastrophic the circumstances might be.
"Equally, their children deserve to be remembered by name; their tragedies should not become their significance" he adds "and their lives, though short, should be acknowledged...and with respect."
Organised Chaos brings this daring piece to the stage with the ethos, 'to be on stage in not necessarily to entertain it is to learn, connect and educate'.
Old Ground
Thursday 28th September to Sunday 8th October
Kings Arms, Bloom Street
8pm with matinee performances too. For full details of times and to book tickets, priced £10 and £12, see Quaytickets click here
See also the trailer for Old Ground on You Tube click here
The audience is being asked to wear black or dark colours
Words by Ian Leslie
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