The Devil’s Caress is here!

Big news. The fabulous play I’ve been talking about has arrived. An Australian Murder Mystery. Based on a novel by Australia’s ‘very own Agatha Christie’. Let me explain…

Melbourne writer June Wright (1919-2012) had six celebrated crime novels published between 1948 and 1966. All had a wonderful sense of place, witty dialogue, and  strong-willed female amateur detectives, ranging from a young telephonist to a nun.

One of my favourites is The Devil’s Caress, a psychological thriller set in Australia in the 1950’s when everyone smoked, drank and dressed for dinner. The action takes place in an isolated clifftop home on a fictional peninsula in Victoria. Hmmmm, wonder where that could be… Waves crash and winds howl as the prerequisite number of interesting persons – mainly doctors – gather for the weekend: ‘as odd a collection of medicos as ever snatched an appendix’ as The Argus (May 1952) put it.

I have been busy adapting The Devil’s Caress to stage. The result is a classic murder mystery interwoven with the story of June Wright herself.  To give you an idea what it was like being a housewife/mother of six/author in Melbourne in that era take a look at an article from The Argus (14 May 1952: p1).

I’m over the moon that The Devil’s Caress is being brought to stage for the first time by Factory Space Theatre Company. And thrilled that it co-incides with the re-release of The Devil’s Caress in print through Verse Chorus Press. Find out more and check out the new cover.

The Devil’s Caress plays Star of the Sea Theatre Manly from Friday 23 March 2018 to Saturday 14 April. No performances over the Easter Weekend. Tickets $28/35 with group discounts/special offers available. For more info: Weekend Notes or Factory Space.

Read sydneyartsguide review.

Read sydneycitynews review.

                                                                                                     Find out more about June.