A UNIQUE adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s dark psychological fantasy, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, visits Poole next month.

The production, which is adapted and directed by Nick Lane, takes inspiration from painful personal experience.

Injured by a car accident at the age of 26 that permanently damaged his neck and back, Lane imagines Jekyll as a physically weakened man who discovers a cure for his ailments, a cure that also unearths the darkest corners of his psyche.

Lane says: “I wondered, if someone offered me a potion that was guaranteed to make me feel the way I did before the accident, but with the side effect that I’d become ruthless and horrible – would I drink it?”

Author Robert Louis Stevenson wrote his terrifying literary creation while living in Bournemouth in the 1880s. Doctor Henry Jekyll is a good man, successful within his field and respected by his peers. He’s close to a neurological discovery that will change the face of medical science forever.

However, his methods are less than ethical and when a close friend threatens to expose and destroy his work, Jekyll is forced to experiment on himself. Suddenly Jekyll has a new friend, the brutal Edward Hyde.

The production remains true to the original novella aside from a new musical score by Tristan Parkes and a major new character, Eleanor, who drives Jekyll on in the same way Stevenson’s wife urged her husband to complete the novel.

Lane adds: “To be given the opportunity to revisit a book that I love and adapt it for four terrific actors is an absolute gift for me. I hope people book their seats, and then spend the entire show on the edge of them!”

Nick Lane’s reworking of this classic Gothic horror story is at Lighthouse, Poole from March 6-7. To book, call 01202 280000.