Cast announced for premiere of These Demons at Theatre503

Casting has been announced for the world premiere of These Demons at Theatre503.

Longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Playwriting, this debut play from writer Rachel Bellman runs from 26 September – 14 October 2023.

Presented by Tanya Truman Productions and Theatre503, the comedy-horror explores Jewish demonology in an intimate family drama about sisterhood, ‘otherness’ and the stigma of the village witch.

Directed by Jasmine Teo, the cast includes Olivia Marcus as Leah (Extraordinary, Disney Plus; Stath Lets Flats, Channel 4; Bad Education, BBC Three), 2023 Stage Debut Award nominee Liv Andrusier as Danielle (Ride, Leicester Curve, Southwark Playhouse and Charing Cross Theatre; Little Women, Park Theatre) and Ann Marcuson (Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, National Theatre; The Family Reunion, Donmar Warehouse; Two Ladies, Bridge Theatre) as Mirah.

These Demons follows 17-year-old Leah as she takes it upon herself to find the person responsible for putting her aunt Mirah in hospital. But as she reaches her aunt’s remote cottage in the woods, old wounds and even older stories from Jewish history and mythology begin to haunt her.

By the time her sister Danielle finds her, Leah’s search for answers has become a search for demons – metaphorical and not. This world premiere asks its audience to consider the assumptions we make about those who are different from us, those we love, and ourselves.

Writer Rachel Bellman said: “I’ve been excited and afraid to tell this story for a number of years now. Jewish demonology isn’t something I learned about while growing up, but as soon as I heard of its existence, I wanted to write about it. The more I tried to research it, the less I felt I knew. To me this is a story about what we do and don’t know about who we are, where we’re from, and all the nagging, darker thoughts that creep up on us but we’re afraid to admit.”

Director Jasmine Teo added: “From the moment Rachel told me about the concept for These Demons I was struck by its originality and uniqueness. Over the past two and a half years we’ve worked together to develop a modern-day horror/thriller/comedy, a genre-blending tale which is entertaining but pertinent, speaks to a multitude of cultural communities and is unlike anything else I’ve come across. I can’t wait to bring it to life on stage.”

For more information and tickets, visit theatre503.com