“They had entered the thorny wilderness, and the golden gates of their childhood had for ever closed behind them.”
In this fluid and visceral re-imagining, Helen Edmundson (Queen Anne, Coram Boy, The Heresy of Love) turns George Eliot's unforgettable story of first love, sibling rivalry and regret into a wonderfully theatrical examination of the psyche of one of classic literature’s most charismatic heroines.
Brought up at Dorlcote Mill, Maggie Tulliver worships her brother Tom and is desperate to win the approval of her parents, but her passionate, wayward nature and her fierce intelligence bring her into constant conflict with her family.
As she reaches adulthood, the clash between their expectations and her desires is painfully played out as she finds herself torn between her relationships with three very different men: her proud and stubborn brother Tom; hunchbacked Phillip Wakem, the son of her family's worst enemy; and the charismatic yet dangerous Stephen Guest.
With its poignant portrayal of sibling relationships, The Mill on the Floss is considered George Eliot's most autobiographical novel and here Edmundson loses none of its breadth, whilst beautifully examining the complex nature of relationships and love.
‘With rare theatrical vibrancy, Helen Edmundson’s free adaptation distils the essence of George Eliot’s feminist novel’ – Evening Standard
‘…not only re-invents the novel, but pushes the boat out theatrically way beyond its usual moorings… The Guardian
‘An intensely moving dramatisation – stylised, but free of empty theatrics’. The Times
Saturday 30 June 8pm
Tickets: £13 Full/£10 Plough Supporters/Families
Box Office: 01805 624624 or online at www.theploughartscentre.org.uk