Press Release – The Woman in Black Haunts Persephone Theatre’s Stage This Fall

Saskatoon, SK – A chilling classic comes to the stage this October as The Woman in Black by Stephen Mallatratt, adapted from the novel by Susan Hill, is on stage from October 22 to November 2, promising audiences an unforgettable theatrical experience filled with mystery, suspense, and spine-tingling tension.

This production means a lot for actor Matthew Burgess, who will be playing the character of Arthur Kipps. Burgess, who currently teaches Drama and English at Aden Bowman, has come out of semi-retirement to play this role, as the play is one he said inspired him to be an actor.

When Burgess was in Grade 12, he went on a school trip to Europe, stopping in cities such as London and Paris. During their time in London, the supervising teacher suggested they should go see The Woman in Black, but warned the students it was scary.

“Not believing them, a few of us went to see it and it changed everything I felt I understood what theatre could do,” Burgess said. “Certainly, I enjoyed being in productions at school, but this production is what really made me want to do this for a living. In a way, I have been chasing this play ever since.”

When Burgess was a student at the University of Saskatchewan, he and local actor/director Skye Brandon produced the play, with Brandon playing Kipps and Burgess playing the Actor.

“Back then Skye and I worked as Directors/Producers, so it was really on us to make sure that it all came together,” Burgess said. “We were very lucky to have a number of like-minded individuals who wanted to join us on the journey, and I would consider it as one of the great successes that I had had in university, because it was really on us to make it work.”

Not only did Burgess decide to audition for the play because of his history with it, but he also wanted his students to have the opportunity to see him perform.

“They have come to see a number of productions that I have had the good fortune to direct at Aden Bowman, but performing is something that I had always hoped that I would be able to do for them,” he said.

He thinks his students are excited to come see him on the Persephone Theatre stage. Past Persephone audiences may remember him from productions like Saint Joan, Home Ice, Velocity, and The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood – but Burgess’ students are too young to have seen those.

“My hope is that they don’t quite know what they are getting into, and that they will have a similar experience to what I had with this show,” he said.

Burgess’ experiences away from the stage and as a teacher have changed his approach to acting in small ways.

“I have realized that we all play characters in our everyday lives,” Burgess explained. “I try to be as honest and authentic as possible, but I know that who I am at work is still only a version of myself.

“I don’t have the opportunity to dive into character feelings as much in my job as a teacher that performs every day in front of my students, so I am looking forward to having those deeply authentic moments in a completely fabricated character that I am hoping to create nuance for.”

Coming back to the stage after a number of years away has been an interesting experience for him.

“It has been years, and my concern is that I am out of practice. As a result, I tried to over prepare, by memorizing my lines in advance,” Burgess said. “At the same time, I also love taking the opportunity to put into practice some of the concepts and ideas that I have been working with my students on.”

He’s also excited to be working with likeminded people again, and can focus solely on doing the best job he can as an actor in this iteration of the play.

“There are amazing individuals in this company with way more creative and ingenious ideas that I could never have come up with in my younger days,” Burgess said. “It is exhilarating to see the design aspects.”

Although the play might have some creepy elements to it, Burgess said it stands to test of time and encourages people to come see it.

“Many people feel like they know what they can expect when going to see theatre, and that often means they may be affected on an emotional level, but not necessarily to the extent that this show can affect people,” Burgess explained.

He said there are interesting elements to the show, which makes people want to talk about it and encourage others to see it.

“There is an “in the know” aspect once you’ve seen the show that makes you as an observer now part of the show,” he said. “If done correctly, you will want others to see it so you can talk to them about it. It has a uniqueness to it that can change people’s experiences and expectations around theatre.”

As for Burgess, he feels like being in the Persephone production is a full circle moment.

“I fully hope that 20 years from now, I can sit in the theatre and watch another production as an audience member again.”

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For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact:

Jodi Schellenberg, Director of Marketing & Communications

[email protected]  | 306-384-2126 ext 237