WITH Sweeney Todd and Dracula also hitting local stages in the next few weeks, companies appear to be choosing gothic over comic.

Barred from experimenting on his mentally-ill father, Dr Henry Jekyll takes matters into his own hands by injecting himself with a cocktail of drugs that summon-forth his alter-ego, the murderous Edward Hyde who systematically extracts revenge on the Governors who denied him.

Stuart Frank gave a very strong performance here, although more could have been done to signal his change in character than deepening his voice and untying his ponytail.

Hannah Edwins sang well as his fiancée Emma, although displaying little emotion, but Lucy Revis topped her as Lucy the prostitute, and their duet In His Eyes was a highlight.

The lively ensemble, brilliant set, lighting, sound, costumes and Rob Douglas’s excellent orchestra all impressed, but, surprisingly, director Kate Bennett didn’t include any fake blood effects as the death-count mounted.

Dead-good though!

Alan Johns