INTERVIEW: This ‘Jekyll & Hyde’ has a comedic twist

Photo: Anna Stromberg stars in Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde with her co-writer, Burt Grinstead. Photo courtesy of Cooper Bates Photography / Provided by DARR Publicity with permission.

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One wonders when Robert Louis Stevenson wrote The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde whether he knew how influential that novella would be. For more than 100 years, the split-personality tale has entranced and horrified readers, and the original story has served as inspiration for countless adaptations and remakes.

Putting a comedic twist on the dark tale is an original idea, one that Blanket Fort Entertainment, a theatrical company, has done with their new stage adaptation, called Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, playing through Dec. 15 at the Soho Playhouse in New York City.

The show was written by and stars Burt Grinstead and Anna Stromberg, and Stromberg also directs the evening. The production originated at the Hollywood Fringe Festival and now is being presented as part of the Fringe Encore Series.

Recently, Hollywood Soapbox recently exchanged emails with Stromberg about the comedic take on the classic story. She is an accomplished stage actor who has appeared with The Amoralists off-Broadway and also directed a production of David Harrower’s Blackbird in Los Angeles. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.

What can audiences expect from Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde?

Audiences can expect a fast-paced, absurdly comedic thriller, with some tenderness sprinkled in for good measure. I think anyone who liked Patrick Barlow’s The 39 Steps or Tim Kelly’s The Hounds of Baskerville, will probably get a kick out of our show. While it is a comedic adaptation, our version of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde hardly deviates from the dark and romantic source material, so fans of the macabre and Stevenson’s work won’t be disappointed either.

Did you go back to the original source material for inspiration?
 
Yes, absolutely. Again and again and again. We read it individually, read it to each other, listened to it on tape. We really dove in head first. We obviously knew the general story beforehand, but strangely enough neither of us had ever read the novella until we started working on this project. We just assumed we were in the minority, but through this process we’ve encountered very few people who have actually read the novella.

Duality and the nature of morality are incredibly attractive themes, so from the beginning putting pen to paper was really exciting, and we worked tirelessly trying to bring the story to life. As we became more and more familiar with the text, we realized just how different all the cinematic iterations of the story are from the actual book. Once we discovered this, we decided to push ourselves to remain as true as possible to Stevenson’s themes and major plot points.

It was a huge challenge to highlight the themes, while interpreting them through our own personal lens, and also inviting humor, pacing and thrills, but hopefully we’ve managed somewhat of a balance! This play should feel like more of an ode to the original, as well as a nod to the older film adaptations, with a lot of our own quirky sensibilities built in as well. That said, whether you are a fan of the novella or not, I think there’s a little something in our adaptation for everyone.

How do you infuse comedy into what is a rather dramatic, dark tale?
 
It was actually much easier than we anticipated it to be. I think in major part due to the fact that the source material has a subtle, but potent satirical edge. For instance, the first section of the novella, in which Utterson and Richard Enfield are walking and gossiping, is actually a pretty incredible essay in observational humor. Stevenson satirizes the puritanical society in 19th century England to explore the themes of good and evil.

We just took it all a bit further, and quite honestly the source material did make us laugh. In fact, one of my favorite laugh lines in our play is lifted directly from the original text, ‘If he should be Mr. Hyde, then I’ll be Mr. Seek.’

I also think a great deal of comedic mileage can be pulled from the earnestness of the characters. As cheap as it may be, earnestness is very easy to mock. We took advantage of this, but tried to do it in a way that honors the characters as well. That being said, we did take some large leaps and injected our own slapstick sense of humor into the story with fast-paced wordplay and outrageous characters. Although it may seem counter-intuitive, we found that mixing over the top comedy with stark tragedy actually played quite well. It was our way of creating empathetic characters. If they could make you smile, they might be able to make you cry. We’re really excited to see how New York City audiences respond to the blend.

What’s it like working with Burt Grinstead?
 
Oh Burt! Well, we got engaged during the initial run of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde in L.A., so I think that says it all. We just really enjoy each other. He is incredibly talented and has such a unique vision. His theatrical sensibility is so fresh and new, and he is a constant inspiration for me. I could honestly go on ad infinitum about him, so I’ll curb my impulses. Simply put, he’s the
best partner I could ever ask for.

When did you realize you wanted to pursue a life in the theater?
 
I’ve been doing theatre since I was a child. Unlike many other children I was in plays with, I knew it was the beginning of something for me rather than another after-school activity, much to my parent’s dismay. I think they saw me as a doctor or a lawyer, but I’m far too impulsive for that kind of work. I’m sure it sounds silly, but I just always knew. I never had that moment of wondering what I would do with my life, what I would become. I was pretty clear on my career from the beginning. The path to get there, though, that’s been a surprise at every turn.

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde plays through Dec. 15 at the Soho Playhouse in Manhattan. Click here for more information and tickets.