The Company brings ‘The Turning at Bly Manor’ to the Drama Studio for the perfect start to the spooky season

One of Sheffield’s longest running community theatre groups, The Company, returns to the Drama Studio this autumn with the world premiere of The Turning at Bly Manor by Sam Islam. This captivating and chilling adaptation blends the legendary Henry James’ great supernatural horror classic ‘The Turn of The Screw’, several of James’ other tales and the modern day, much like Mike Flanagan’s hit Netflix miniseries ‘The Haunting of Bly Manor’ to create a stage adaptation unlike ever seen before.

We welcome you to Bly Manor: the beautiful estate of a dead billionaire and the mysterious home of a timeless secret. In 1899, a young governess is plunged into a world where apparitions abound. Her charges, Flora and Miles are now on the cusp of adulthood, twisted by the haunting of Bly’s past. As they tangle impossibly close, their motives towards The Governess grow increasingly murky as old ghosts begin to rise from the manor’s depths.

In the present day, five people accept an invitation to uncover the secrets of Bly Manor and vanish without a trace. As the past and present intertwine, forbidden passions blossom, dangerous secrets are brought to light and Bly’s newest inhabitants are forced to confront the fact they may be there for a much darker purpose.

The Company is a staple of Sheffield’s community theatre scene, punching well above their weight by producing high-quality theatre productions. They have been performing at the Drama Studio for over 30 years, and entertained more than 2000 audience members in the past two years alone. This play follows the success of The Company’s critically-acclaimed horror productions; The Haunting of Hill House (2022), Night of the Living Dead™ Live (2023) and Dracula (2024). The Company’s Artistic Director, Mark Todd explains:

The Company has a fine tradition of producing inventive and immersive horror productions, from taking a fresh look with a gender-swapped Dracula, to the gloriously ghostly Haunting of Hill House. As such, when I saw the pitch for The Turning of Bly Manor, which combined several stories from the legendary Henry James into Sam’s fresh and unique script and directed by horror devotees and theatrical forces of nature Monica and Erin, I knew immediately that this would be an incredible show. This production promises to be the perfect start to the spooky season and I can’t wait to see it hit the stage at the Drama Studio.

Gone Girl author Gillian Flynn defines James’ The Turn of the Screw as one of the most chilling ghost stories ever told. Working closely with Sam Islam, directors Monica Gallo and Erin Whyte seek to explore the gothic James’ universe through a folk horror lens. Erin Whyte describes:

‘Whilst I love a gothic haunted house as much as the next morbid individual, I was drawn to how this adaptation incorporated elements of folk horror – the isolation of the manor, the secrecy of the those who inhabit it and what otherworldly folkloric forces are lurking beneath this green and pleasant land waiting for another turn in the Sun?  We have a group of five, bringing their modern ideals and relationships into an old space – but it’s not the first time the historical and the spiritual have collided at Bly Manor.’

In The Turning at Bly Manor, the gothic ghouls are reimagined and collide with pagan folklore such as The Green Man and the pagan gods, and the magic carried by Bly Manor is fueled by something ancient, angry and filled with feminine rage.

Folk horror film classics such as The Wicker Man (1973), The VVitch (2015), and Midsommar (2019) have long been used in response to a world in chaos; crumbling public services, right wing extremism, fears of war and environmental collapse. In exploring these themes, The Turning at Bly Manor is critically relevant to modern audiences. Monica Gallo expands:

“Horror can speak the truth in ways that other genres cannot. A reoccurring theme in our show is how history bleeds into the present and how we’re doomed to repeat those patterns. This is something we see all around us — not only in our own lives, but also on a global scale. This isn’t just a ghost story, it’s a warning.”

The Turning at Bly Manor plays at the Drama Studio, Sheffield September – 3^rd October 2026. Tickets are available here.