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STAGE: Nicola Alexis

ONE of the most iconic works of literature of the 1960s, To Kill A Mockingbird takes to the UK stage this week. The famed novel by Harper Lee focused on racial inequality in the Southern states of America, as seen through the eyes of a six-year-old girl.

The story was famously adapted into a film of the same name in 1962 and now, Croydon’s Ashcroft Theatre will retell the tale of a small American town becoming embroiled in the trial of a black man accused of raping a young white woman.

The play stars actress Nicola Alexis, famed for her role in ITV’s The Bill. Here, she tells Hazelann Williams how the story, which was penned over 50 years ago, remains relevant today.

How is the novel relevant to today’s audience?
I’m not sure if people will ever stop talking about race. Things like young black people being stopped in the streets, the recent race relations debate and the Stephen Lawrence case are all very current issues in Britain.

Why do you think the story remains so popular?
There’s something about the way this story is told; it’s not hard hitting and in-your-face. It’s gently giving you a glimpse of how race relations were handled back then. I read To Kill a Mockingbird at a very young age and when I finished, I felt dissatisfied. I thought the black story in it wasn’t as great as it could have been. But now, studying the play, I realised just how big it is, and how central it is to the whole story.
In what ways will this production differ from the novel?

Whenever you do a play of a famous novel, there are always going to be differences, because you have different actors and directors and different interpretations. I think we have an amazing cast and director who are trying to give it a modern feel, although it is set in a different era.

What will the audience take away from this play?
Hopefully they leave with some views, which they then go and talk about and think further about. Theatre should make you think and talk and discuss and question your own beliefs. You might come and question your own childhood memories and the state of the world we live in today.

To Kill a Mockingbird is at Ashcroft Theatre, Park Lane, Croydon from February 2 to February 4. For more information visit www.fairfield.co.uk