{"id":87024,"date":"2025-09-18T14:19:27","date_gmt":"2025-09-18T21:19:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/hi-lo\/?p=87024"},"modified":"2025-09-18T14:21:35","modified_gmt":"2025-09-18T21:21:35","slug":"theater-news-long-beach-playhouse-to-stage-scary-yet-timely-dr-jekyll-mr-hyde","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/hi-lo\/art\/theater-news-long-beach-playhouse-to-stage-scary-yet-timely-dr-jekyll-mr-hyde","title":{"rendered":"Theater news: Long Beach Playhouse to stage scary yet timely \u2018Dr. Jekyll &#038; Mr. Hyde\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><em>Welcome to Theater News, a regular column by longtime reviewer Anita W. Harris. Look for it most Thursdays. Or&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/newsletters\">sign up<\/a>&nbsp;for our Eat See Do newsletter to get it in your inbox.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>When politicians and neighbors alike point fingers about who is right and who is wrong, who is \u201cgood\u201d and who is \u201cevil,\u201d it\u2019s hard to find common ground. Psychologist Carl Jung believed each of us has a \u201cshadow\u201d side of negative traits we like to deny in ourselves and instead project onto others but which, if ignored, can grow in power and lead to destructive behavior.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Such is the case in Robert Louis Stevenson\u2019s 1886 novel \u201cThe Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,\u201d based on a true story, in which \u201cgood\u201d healer Jekyll and \u201cevil\u201d killer Hyde are actually the same person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div style=\"text-align: center;\">\n    <a href=\"#XHECJQES\">Link<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>Innovatively adapted for the stage in 2008 by Jeffrey Hatcher as \u201cDr. Jekyll &amp; Mr. Hyde,\u201d the brutish Mr. Hyde is split into four different characters, each revealing a different aspect of his brutality, sexuality and cruelty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cOne of the arguments I&#8217;ve never quite believed \u2014 and I suspect Stevenson didn&#8217;t believe it either \u2014 is that Henry Jekyll is wholly good while Edward Hyde is wholly evil,\u201d Hatcher said of his play. \u201dI&#8217;m trying to have some fun with the notion that Jekyll and Hyde play a cat-and-mouse game with each other, and with the question of just who we should be rooting for.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Long Beach Playhouse is set to stage the play beginning this weekend through mid-October, directed by David Scaglione, who had previously directed \u201cThe Passion of Dracula\u201d and \u201cFrankenstein 1930\u201d at the theater.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"DR. JEKYLL AND MR. HYDE Preview Clip - &quot;I&#039;ve Lost Three Days&quot;\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/jgJ9q4JnWA0?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Artistic director Sean Gray said Scaglione has a knack for characters who embody the macabre. He also agrees with playwright Hatcher that the two parts of the same character in \u201cDr. Jekyll &amp; Mr. Hyde\u201d are neither simply good nor simply evil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe complexity makes for a more interesting story,\u201d Gray said. \u201cStevenson\u2019s tale was also mindful of Victorian prudishness around the human body, including sexuality. At the time, the phrase \u2018from tongue to tail\u2019 was scandalous. Hatcher\u2019s 21st-century sensibilities are less prudish.&#8221;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For his part, director Scaglione compares Jekyll and Hyde\u2019s duality to our own societal struggles between rich and poor, noting that Hyde is at home among the street people of Victorian London. He\u2019s also lustful in ways that Jekyll represses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/hi-lo\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq-1024x682.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-87026\" srcset=\"https:\/\/img.lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/18141717\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq-1024x682.png 1024w, https:\/\/img.lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/18141717\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq-300x200.png 300w, https:\/\/img.lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/18141717\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq-768x512.png 768w, https:\/\/img.lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/18141717\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq-162x108.png 162w, https:\/\/img.lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/18141717\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq-1536x1023.png 1536w, https:\/\/img.lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/18141717\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq-1200x800.png 1200w, https:\/\/img.lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/18141717\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq-1568x1045.png 1568w, https:\/\/img.lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/18141717\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq-400x267.png 400w, https:\/\/img.lbpost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2025\/09\/18141717\/jekyll-2-704122-iayuluab-558289-jEfjYQxq.png 1978w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">A preview photo of Long Beach Playhouse&#8217;s upcoming production of &#8220;Dr. Jekyll &#038; Mr. Hyde.&#8221; Photo courtesy of the theater.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s against this backdrop that the respectable Dr. Jekyll has begun to display alarmingly erratic behavior,\u201d the theater describes. \u201cAt the same time, a brutal figure haunts the city&#8217;s streets, committing assault and murder under the cloak of darkness and London\u2019s dismal fog.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Besides a potent tale for our times, it\u2019s obviously also a perfect play to whet our appetites for Halloween coming up, executive director Madison Mooney says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019re entering the season of scary tales, and this show will absolutely help audiences get in the mood for spirits, good and bad,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s all part of the season\u2019s fun.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><i>\u201cDr. Jekyll &amp; Mr. Hyde\u201d runs Sept. 20 to Oct. 18 at the Long Beach Playhouse, 5021 E. Anaheim St., with shows Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. Special offers: pay-what-you-can Thursday, Sept. 18 at 8 p.m.; $10 preview on Friday, Sept. 19 at 8 p.m.; and opening night champagne reception with the cast on Saturday, Sept. 20.<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Besides a potent tale for our times, it\u2019s obviously also a perfect play to whet our appetites for Halloween coming up, executive director Madison Mooney says.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":207,"featured_media":87027,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"newspack_sponsor_sponsorship_scope":"","newspack_sponsor_native_byline_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_native_category_display":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_style":"inherit","newspack_sponsor_underwriter_placement":"inherit","inline_featured_image":false,"newspack_ads_suppress_ads":false,"newspack_popups_has_disabled_popups":"","_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_":"","_author_alias":"","cap-aim":"","cap-description":"","cap-display_name":"","cap-first_name":"","cap-jabber":"","cap-last_name":"","cap-linked_account":"","cap-newspack_employer":"","cap-newspack_job_title":"","cap-newspack_phone_number":"","cap-newspack_role":"","cap-user_email":"","cap-user_login":"","cap-website":"","cap-yahooim":"","newspack_article_summary":"","newspack_email_html":"","newspack_email_type":"","newspack_featured_image_position":"","newspack_hide_page_title":"","newspack_hide_updated_date":false,"newspack_post_subtitle":"","newspack_show_share_buttons":"","newspack_sponsor_byline_prefix":"","newspack_sponsor_disclaimer_override":"","newspack_sponsor_flag_override":"","newspack_sponsor_only_direct":"","newspack_sponsor_url":"","newspack_article_summary_title":"Overview:","newspack_show_updated_date":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"newspack_spnsrs_tax":[],"coauthors":[32310],"class_list":["post-87024","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-art","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87024","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/207"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=87024"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87024\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":87028,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/87024\/revisions\/87028"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/87027"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=87024"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=87024"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=87024"},{"taxonomy":"newspack_spnsrs_tax","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/newspack_spnsrs_tax?post=87024"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbpost.com\/esd\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=87024"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}