Machinal

Machinal, Sophie Treadwell's 1928 play, brought the house down at the Theatre Royal Bath's Ustinov Studio in 2023. Directed by Richard Jones of Endgame and The Hairy Ape fame, it stars Rosie Sheehy in the London transfer, on at The Old Vic in April 2024 for a seven week run. As The Old Vic’s director Matthew Warchus said, “Once in a while a production or lead performance comes along which makes theatre history.” Rosie Sheehy’s performance has been called ‘gobsmacking’ and the production as a whole ‘unmissable’.

Machinal reimagines the true story of Ruth Snyder, the 32 year old American woman sentenced to death in 1928 for murdering her husband. The case stuck in the American imagination because matricide is so rare, and because Snyder's execution was photographed, mid-electrocution, then published in the New York Daily News the next day. Machinal explores the life of her Synder character, Helen Jones, in the run up to the crime and her eventual execution. The London transfer features the original cast including Daniel Abelson, Sam Alexander, Steven Beard, Daniel Bowerbank, Imogen Daines and Tim Frances. Perfect for lovers of BIG real life drama with an edge.