Rehearsals: Probably two weekday evenings and one longer Sunday rehearsal each week starting in January. ‘The thriller that gripped the world’ Rachel catches the same soulless commuter train each morning. Every day it passes the scene of her old life – a life now occupied by another woman. She knows the train will stop and wait at the same signal, overlooking the row of back gardens in her old street, and has even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the neighbouring houses. Their life, as she sees it, is perfect. If only Rachel could be that happy… And then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. When she discovers that the woman she watches has gone missing, Rachel becomes a part of the lives she has been watching from afar. As she involves herself in the police investigation, she starts to uncover a web of tangled secrets. This adaptation is a fast-moving modern psychological thriller with multiple locations and scenes overlapping and interwoven with memories and flashbacks. Rachel is a flawed unreliable narrator, a black-out alcoholic with gaping holes in her memory. Our staging will aim to create in the audience a sense of uncertainty about what’s real and what’s fantasy or false, and will prompt them, like Rachel, to ask themselves the question: are the police correct in their suspicions – might she be a murderer? Behind the modern staging we also need to serve the plot of a traditional whodunnit, and the aim is to create a production that will draw in and grip even those who have read the novel or seen the Dreamworks film.

Roles

I need a cast of seven. There is some flexibility in the stated playing ages. Rachel Watson – Female. Playing age 25-40. This wonderfully rewarding role is physically and mentally demanding. The actress playing Rachel is on stage for the whole of the play. Rachel is by turns erratic, confused, paranoid, obsessed, determined and desperate as her life spins out of control. She’s divorced, after being unable to conceive a child. She’s lost her job and is about to be evicted from her flat. For much of the play Rachel is a barely functional drunk, though practised at hiding her alcoholism. She has some intimate moments with Scott and Tom and is both the perpetrator and target of physical aggression and violence. Tom Watson – Male. Playing age 30-45. Tom is Rachel’s ex-husband. He’s now married to Anna with whom he’s had a baby, Evie. He’s outwardly smooth and charming and uses this to attract women. He’s also ambitious, narcissistic, and controlling…Some intimate moments with Rachel. Physically abuses Rachel. Anna Watson – Female. Playing age 25-35. Anna is Tom’s new wife, and mother to their baby Evie. She’s living in the house that Tom and Rachel bought together. She’s in thrall to Tom and believes that Rachel is harassing Tom and is trying to win him back. Her priority is to protect her marriage and her baby, whatever that takes… Megan Hipwell – Female. Playing age 20-35. Megan is an artist, a hipster with the world at her feet, a woman that other women want to be, and that other people might easily fall in love with. In fact, she’s deeply unhappy in life and seeks comfort and excitement in extra-marital affairs. Megan’s disappearance shapes the story of the play, and her appearances are in a series of flashbacks and memories. Megan has brief intimate moments with Scott and Kamal. She is the subject of physical violence from Scott and discusses sensitive matters around child loss. Scott Hipwell – Male. Playing age 25-40. Scott is Megan’s husband. He’s possessive of her, reads her emails, checks her internet history, etc. and, on discovering her infidelity, threatens to kill her… Scott has a short temper and, as well as having some intimate moments with both Rachel and his wife Megan, he’s also physically aggressive towards them both. Kamal Abdic – Male. Playing age 30+. Megan’s therapist. He’s been helping her to work through her troubled past. He appears charming and professional but has in fact struggled to keep his professional and romantic lives separate…Has some brief intimate moments with Megan. Detective Inspector Gaskill – Male or Female. Playing age 40+. DI Gaskill is the lead detective on Megan Hipwell’s case. Insightful and persistent, with a dry sense of humour. Experienced and authoritative, but sometimes impatient. Requires an actor with a strong, grounded stage presence. Let me know if you’d like to see a script or are interested but cannot make the audition dates. If you decide to audition, let me know, and I’ll send you the audition pieces for the roles for which you’re planning to read. You won’t need to learn the pieces, but they will give you a chance to prepare ahead of what will be relaxed group auditions.