Dream role for Polycarpou in The Hollow
Taking on one of literature‘s most famous detectives in Agatha Christie‘s The Hollow on a UK tour is two-time Olivier award nominee Peter Polycarpou - who admits playing legendary detective Hercule Poirot has been years in the making.
“Getting to play him is a real bucket-list moment for me,“ he says. “He‘s been on my wish list for a long time. Poirot is so iconic, this wonderfully logical man who has such a moral responsibility to him and who has a huge psychological insight into people.”
Best known for acclaimed stage performances in Oslo, The Band‘s Visit and the stage musical version of novel The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry, alongside screen credits including House of the Dragon and The Brutalist, Polycarpou now joins a celebrated list of actors who have portrayed Christie‘s Belgian sleuth.
In The Hollow, Poirot arrives in the English countryside hoping for a quiet retreat, only to find himself drawn into a murder investigation when a gathering at an elegant country house ends in tragedy. What appears to be a straightforward crime soon reveals itself to be far more complex.
Polycarpou says stepping into Poirot‘s polished shoes comes with a unique challenge: “There is a weight of expectation in playing Poirot,” he explained. “It‘s like playing Hamlet, in a sense. To make it my own, I‘ve researched as much as I can about him, delving into his traits, his idiosyncrasies and his backstory.”
Directed by Lucy Bailey, whose previous Christie productions include Witness for the Prosecution, And Then There Were None, Murder on the Orient Express and Death on the Nile, this new adaptation concerns one of the Queen of Crime‘s most psychologically rich stories.
“It‘s not a puzzle mystery, where Poirot‘s task is to work out how the crime has happened,” Bailey explained. “Here, Christie is more interested in the psychological dynamics within a family. It’s Christie meets Chekhov.”
Originally published in 1946, The Hollow stands apart from many of Christie‘s better-known works, focusing as much on the motivations and emotions of its characters as it does on solving the crime. For Bailey, that depth is part of the reason the story continues to resonate with audiences: “Having studied her writing so intensively, I‘ve really come to appreciate her humour, sharp observation and her understanding of human nature in all its craziness.”
Blending suspense, wit and psychological intrigue, The Hollow offers theatre audiences a fresh encounter with Poirot and a chance to experience one of Christie‘s most fascinating mysteries.
The show opens its mainland tour (it starts in Belfast this week), at Newcastle Theatre Royal next week (November 10-14), before visiting Sheffield Lyceum (March 23-27), Salford’s Lowry (April 20-24), Leeds Playhouse (April 27-May 1) and York Grand Opera House (May 18-22) and other theatres.
More info and tickets here
