REBECCA is a book beloved by generations.

It was made into an iconic Alfred Hitchcock Oscar winning film and now Emma Rice, an award winning director, has created a spellbinding new stage production which heads for Malvern next week.

Daphne du Maurier’s masterpiece, which conjures Cornish romance, picks up after the mysterious death of Maxim de Winter’s first wife. He returns home to Manderley with a new young bride but surrounded by memories of the glamorous Rebecca, the new Mrs De Winter is consumed by jealousy. She sets out to uncover the secrets of the house and a past fiercely guarded by the sinister housekeeper Mrs Danvers. All is not what it seems in Manderley...

The cast is led by Tristan Sturrock as Maxim de Winter, Emily Raymond is Mrs Danvers with Richard Clews, Katy Owen, Ewan Wardrop, Andy Williams and Lizzie Winkler. This new adaptation introduces Imogen Sage as Mrs de Winter.

Tristan Sturrock originated the roles of Alec in Brief Encounter and Tristan in Tristan & Yseult, and has gone on to play both in the West End and across the UK, America and Australia. His one man show, Mayday Mayday, has played successful seasons in Edinburgh and New York.

This Theatre Royal Plymouth production is presented by the Kneehigh Theatre, one of the country’s most celebrated companies, and is based in Cornwall just a stone’s throw from Daphne du Maurier’s home.

The company has grown from humble beginnings and has carved a global reputation for their extraordinary shows. They have created productions with the National Theatre and the Royal Shakespeare Company and their international hits include Trsitan & Yseult and Brief Encounter.

Emma Rice is Kneehigh’s joint artistic director and is known for her “remarkably inventive, eye-catching theatricality” (San Francisco Chronicle). Her credits include The Red Shoes, Don John, Brief Encounter and Tristan & Yseult.

Rebecca runs at the Festival Theatre for a week from Monday, May 4 to Saturday, May 9, 2015.