Show 564: Rats! – 2 May, New Wolsey, Ipswich

London, 1665

Philanthropist Lord Windy is obsessed with helping the poor in the plague-infested parts of London. But his friends in high society think he has gone too far when he turns his residence, Somerset House into a home for the poor. He falls in love with a plague survivor, Mrs Robinson, and it becomes clear that his deteriorating mental state is linked to his guilt at the death of his beloved wife, who it transpired had died alone after months of being ignored by her obsessive husband.

As he spirals into a psychological breakdown, regret, love and lust all combine in the mysterious figure of Mrs Robinson. Who is she? Why does she remind him so much of his dead wife? And will he find redemption before he loses his sanity?

Featuring tap-dancing rats.