THE REGINA MONOLOGUES Comes to Maltings Theatre

The MALTINGS THEATRE re-opened its doors to a public keen to attend live theatre on October 6th with a sellout production of THE 39 STEPS directed by Maltings Artistic Director Adam Nichols.

Opening on October 27th is the bitter-sweet comedy THE REGINA MONOLOGUES , a modern reimagining of the six wives of Henry VIII, where six women - who have all been married to a man called HENRY - tell their stories with humour, pathos, and a great deal of wine, from the bedroom they all once inhabited. Written by Rebecca Russell and Jenny Wafer in 2004 and performed at the Maltings, Edinburgh Fringe, and the Jermyn Street Theatre, this fast-paced topical version is directed by original cast member Anna Franklin.

"We were scheduled to perform The Regina Monologues just before lockdown," says busy Anna, (left, photo by Sophie Lechner-King) who also performs in the Maltings production of 'The Merry Wives of Windsor'. "So we put the production on ice for a few months, defrosted it recently and gave it a few topical ingredients as well as a good shake 'n' stir so it's ready for its close-up on the Maltings stage.

"It's about six women who have all been married to the same man called Henry and is set in the bedroom that they've all occupied over the years. Their individual stories mirror their Tudor counterparts and are richly woven with in-jokes; for example one story told about Anne of Cleves is that Henry VIII fell in love with her portrait but when she arrived at court she looked somewhat different; in our story Anne's looking for a man online and slightly misrepresents herself. I'm playing Katherine (Parr) about whom we don't hear very much but she was a fascinating character: she was the first English queen to publish a book under her own name; in our version she's a professional widow who's had a suspicious number of older husbands who have left her all their money!

"We've also got a fabulous soundtrack with tracks by Ella Fitzgerald and Nina Simone and I think the show will have massive female appeal with its comedy and its universal references to women's issues - bring your men along too though, I know they'll enjoy it!"

October and November programme:

• October 27th-31st THE REGINA MONOLOGUES directed by Anna Franklin
• November 3rd-7th brand new opera ON BEHALF OF A MADMAN directed by Julia Mintzer
• November 10th-14th Virginia Woolf's A ROOM OF ONE'S OWN Adapted and performed by Rebecca Vaughan
• November 17th-21st TRESTLE directed by Matthew Parker
• November 24th-28th G&S EXPRESS, an evening of Gilbert & Sullivan

Tickets and programme information: www.maltingstheatre.co.uk box office 0333 666 4466