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As Sir Trevor Nunn takes Fatal Attraction from the screen to the stage, Jo Caird pays him a visit in the midst of rehearsals to find out more.

atal Attraction was the smash writer wanted to do something more hit Hollywood blockbuster representative of his original intentions of 1987: the highest-grossing for the film. He confirms: ‘Right from the movie of the year and recipient get go it wasn’t just a repeat.’ of six Oscar nominations. So The new cast will also bring a new it’s a bit of a surprise to find dynamic. Mark Bazeley of The Bourne thatF its stage premiere will be in . Ultimatum plays the cheating husband. Not so, says the veteran theatre director The role is played by Natascha The ending also caused fevered debate Sir Trevor Nunn (right). Though the movie McElhone, who previously starred in about its sexual politics: preview audiences starred as a happily The Truman Show and is now famous in hated how the woman got the upper hand, married New Yorker who strays, and Glenn America for the TV series Californication. and though Glenn Close fought the change Close as his vengeful one-night stand, And making her West End debut as for two weeks, a new ending was filmed in the original screenplay was written by the cuckolded wife is Kristin Davis, aka which her character was brutally shot dead Brit James Dearden and set in London. Charlotte in Sex And The City. in the bath. London audiences, surprisingly, ‘Of course,’ explains Nunn, ‘once it was The film caused a sensation in 1987, will be seeing neither of the two endings. picked up by Hollywood, then it had to be partly because it was seen as a metaphor ‘What we’re doing,’ reveals Nunn, ‘is a adapted to something American.’ for AIDS: a one-night stand has hideous third, and therefore to some extent I’ve Nunn and Dearden discussed returning consequences when the woman refuses to got to keep my cards very close to my the stage adaptation to a London setting, accept it was a casual fling. She stalks and chest because we want people to be duly but decided that they had ‘a certain threatens her lover, ultimately breaking involved and intrigued and surprised.’ responsibility to expectation. People into his home and cooking the family pet And what of the notoriously steamy sex are going to want to see a recognisable in a pot. The popular term ‘bunny boiler’, scene? How will that work on stage? It account of what they saw in the cinema.’ meaning an unstable and obsessional won’t, is the answer. ‘Sex scenes that are ▲ That said, Nunn liked the fact that the woman, originated with Fatal Attraction. absolutely commonplace in the

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