Single White Female – Blackpool Grand

Nineties nostalgia arrives in Blackpool this week, in the shape of the new stage version of John Lutz’s psychological thriller Single White Female, made famous by the 1992 movie starring Bridget Fonda and Jennifer Jason Leigh. Adapted by Rebecca Reid, the story is updated to the present day and relocated to the UK. Whilst many aspects are in keeping with the original, this stage adaptation certainly attempts to reinvent itself somewhat.

The plot centres around Allie, following the breakdown of her marriage. As she moves into her own apartment, struggling for money, she advertises for a lodger. In an interesting twist to the original, Allie now has angsty teenage daughter, Bella instead of a dog (thank goodness no labrador puppies are harmed in this production!). When Hedy takes up the offer of the spare room, the two women develop a budding friendship. However, it doesn’t take long for this to start to unravel as Hedy becomes manipulative, possessive and obsessive of Bella as the show progresses, leading to a dramatic conclusion.

When adapting a film to a play, there are some obvious hurdles to overcome – especially when said film is well known. With the entirety of the production taking place in Allie’s apartment, Morgan Large’s design felt claustrophobic and sterile which really aided the piece. The issues sprung for this adaptation in the building of tension which can be subtly conveyed by close-up cameras but is difficult to recreate to a large audience. Whilst this was valiantly attempted, at times rather than creating thrilling tension, unintentional humour came to the fore.

Kym Marsh faced the difficult challenge of playing Hedy. Bringing all her experience to the role, she gave a range of emotions, particularly excelling in the latter scenes where Hedy is at her lowest. Her performance was down to earth and believable, to a point. Her demise seemed to happen very quickly, with little prior warning, as the story seemed to accelerate from zero to 100 in no time at all. This wasn’t a fault of Marsh, but rather the writing. For example, had you not seen the movie, it might be confusing as to why she had suddenly copied Allie’s hairstyle and donned her dress. Unfortunately, the sloppy writing led to an almost farcical conclusion as opposed to the anticipated thrills.

Lisa Faulker, returning to the stage for the first time in 20 years, as Allie, gave a passable and authentic performance. Again, perhaps a fault of the writing, the character felt unsympathetic and played all on the same note throughout. Faulkner and Marsh had believable chemistry as friends, but I would have liked to see a change in Allie as Marsh’s Hedy spiralled. Was Allie angry or frightened or fearful? Who knows.

A real highlight for the production were the sound and light designs, by Max Pappenheim and Jason Taylor. Particularly between scenes, there was a real air of menace and foreboding created. Whilst direction from Gordon Greenberg was generally fine, it was a real shame for one of the most iconic moments (no spoilers!) to be lost behind the coffee table.

Overall, I am unsure whether this adaptation was entirely necessary or indeed worked as a piece of thrilling theatre. The writing was clumsy, and the pace of the storytelling was all over the place, leading me to feel it is a little lost in translation. However, I couldn’t help but enjoy the production. It was very watchable, nostalgic, fun and the perfect escapism for a cold Tuesday night. I loved all the nods to the movie, from stilettos to broken sinks but the twist at the end pleasingly caught me off guard. Whilst it isn’t going to be in the running for any awards, it will certainly guarantee a good night out.

Single White Female is at Blackpool Grand Theatre until Saturday 21st February 2026. Book tickets here: https://www.blackpoolgrand.co.uk

Reviewer: Paddy Darnell-Walsh

Reviewed: 17th February 2026

North West End UK Rating: