Jack the Ripper is in Eastleigh!
| Published: 21st April 2008 22:16 |
To mark the 120th anniversary of London's most notorious serial killer, Eastleigh College's School of Visual and Creative Arts are staging a production of Jack the Ripper like no other!
Performed by the Eastleigh College's BTEC National Diploma in Performing Arts students as their final major project, the piece has been specially written for the College and is set in the East End back streets of 19th Century London.
The role of Jack is being performed by James Sayers, who has just been accepted into the prestigious London Academy Italia Conti of Theatre Arts with a rare unconditional offer.
Sets, props and costume have been designed to reflect the period, the majority of which have been created in-house by Up Stage Productions, the college's own professional production company run by the students.
Performance Details
Jack the Ripper gets its Premier on Wednesday 30th April 2008 at 7.30pm, in the Main Hall on Eastleigh College's Main Campus, with two further performances on Thursday 1st and Friday 2nd May 2008 at 7.30 pm.
Tickets are £5.00 adults and £3.50 concessions: Available from Eastleigh College Reception - Telephone 02380 911000.
Due to the subject matter and its dramatisation, this performance may not be suitable for those under the age of 12.
Jack the Ripper - The Background
This year is the 120th anniversary of the Whitechapel murders commonly known as the Jack the Ripper case.
It is widely believed that his first victim was Mary Anne (Polly) Nichols; she was killed around 3.30am in Buck's row on Friday 31st August 1888.
Her murder and the name ‘Jack the Ripper' brought fear to the people of London's East End, the subsequent press frenzy deepened the public's terror and panic as at it's height the case gained international notoriety, appearing in newspapers from Europe and the Americas.
Of the five murders attributed to ‘Saucy Jack‘ the killing and mutilation of his final victim, Mary Jane Kelly, is truly the most horrific, her mutilated body was found in her single room rented accommodation on the day of the annual Lord Mayor's celebrations in Spitalfields on the 9th November 1888. She was, as were all his victims, an ‘unfortunate' a common prostitute.
Investigators had then, as now, no idea who he was and why over that short period in 1888 he stalked murdered and mutilated those poor unfortunate women. There have been countless books and films, many of them claiming to have solved the mystery.
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