A Yorkshire Tragedy tells the shocking story of a 17th Century murder in Leeds and retells it in the intimate setting of the Great Barn, Titchfield from 22 – 31 July 2024.

Published in 1608, the play originally carried an attribution to William Shakespeare. However, academics now believe Thomas Middleton mainly wrote it, possibly co-writing with Shakespeare, and first performed it at the Globe Theatre in 1605. A haunting and disturbing domestic tragedy, this is a rare opportunity to see A Yorkshire Tragedy, considered by many to be one of the finest one-act tragedies in early modern drama. It is a relentless, violent story of one man’s fall, includes gambling addiction, domestic abuse, and demonic possession.

John O’Hanlon, director of A Yorkshire Tragedy, spoke to Simon Frost:

Simon: Why did you choose to direct this play?

John: I stumbled upon A Yorkshire Tragedy purely by chance a few years ago - whilst reading an article [by Sara Reid] on a shocking storyline in The Archers – the play was in fact referenced, pertaining to domestic violence; this initially aroused my curiosity...what was this play that was described as ‘one of the finest one-act tragedies of early modern drama’? Not long after that I fortuitously found a copy in a second-hand bookshop. After reading it, I was instantly struck by the play’s powerful passionate narrative and [woefully] its existing application to our own society; the play resonates and chimes with the current debate on attitudes towards women and male violence.

Simon: Tell me please what the play is about.

John: The play loosely dramatises a notorious case from 1605. In this case, a wealthy Lord, Walter Calverley, head of a well-known Yorkshire family, faced spiralling debts, alcoholism, and despair, which drove him to attack his wife, Phillipa Brooke, and murder two of his three children. He was apprehended on his way to murder the third child; these events caused a huge sensation at the time. When it was published, the work was attributed to Shakespeare; though academics now believe it is mainly the work of the controversial playwright Thomas Middleton, possibly co-written with Shakespeare. It is a one act play, dealing with addiction; domestic abuse; mental illness and ‘demonic possession’. A Yorkshire Tragedy is undeniably worth re-evaluating.

Simon: Why will the Great Barn be such a good venue to perform A Yorkshire Tragedy?

John: Originally the play was performed at The Globe in 1608; like so many plays of the time, including of course Shakespeare’s own plays, the requirement for a ‘set’ was superfluous. Location was suggestive rather than actual. In this case a domestic setting is all that is required. Elizabethan and Jacobean plays were written for an unrealistic style of presentation; a character might remain on stage but the locale would change, this change being noticed only in the dialogue. The play is relentlessly episodic so The Great Barn is the ideal setting.

Simon: Why should the audience come along and watch? I believe it is a rare opportunity to see this play performed on stage.

John: I believe audiences will be intrigued to see this rarely seen ‘Jacobean’ play once attributed to Shakespeare; written not long after King Lear, Macbeth and Coriolanus; plays dealing with male pride, obstinate and malevolent autocrats, directly linking to the husband in A Yorkshire Tragedy. Though the play has rarely been performed professionally, for some reason, there have been notable performances in London and Leeds, and is often performed in the Arts Departments of Universities, here and in the States. So, this could very well be the first time it’s been performed in Hampshire? I’m happy to be corrected. Yes the play is disturbing and violent; but then so is the blinding of King Lear and the savage carnage of Titus Andronicus, particularly of Lavinia.

Simon: When was it discovered that this play was the work of Thomas Middleton? Do you think that it was co-written with Shakespeare?

John: The authorship of A Yorkshire Tragedy has been a subject of debate for some time. It is thought the original publisher of the play craftily placed Shakespeare’s name prominently under the title in order to sell more copies. In the play there are ‘ricochets’ of other plays by Shakespeare: Richard III and Macbeth in particular. The play was based on pamphlets [early form of newspapers] reporting the crime and it is now widely accepted - since the seventies in fact - that Thomas Middleton was largely involved in dramatising the story, with some academics believing that Shakespeare had a hand in some of the speeches of the Wife and possibly The Husband. The act of collaboration was a well-known practice in Elizabethan and Jacobean drama. Thomas Middleton [1550-1627] has been described as ‘our other Shakespeare’, and was hugely prodigious in his output of dramas and comedies; he wrote and collaborated in writing some of the most powerful Jacobean dramas of his day, including The Changeling, The Revenger’s Tragedy and a play which proved to be the biggest box office hit of its day: The Game At Chess.

Thank you, John.

A Yorkshire Tragedy performs in the Great Barn, Titchfield between 22 - 31 July 2024. For more information including booking tickets please go to http://titchfieldfestivaltheatre.com/  or contact our Box Office on 0333 666 3366. After the 1 hour play, there will be a Q&A with director John O'Hanlon and the cast.

Note: A Yorkshire Tragedy is not suitable for children under fourteen and contains scenes some may find upsetting.