Why Kym is loving bringing 90s psychological thriller to Peterborough stage

Yet, in her latest role, as Hedy, in the world premiere stage adaptation of the iconic Nineties’ psychological thriller, Single White Female, audiences are in for a surprise and are going to be unsure whether she’s friend or foe.

The play is about to begin a six-month tour of the UK, reaching Peterborough New Theatre from April 7-11. It tells the story of recently divorced mum Allie, who is trying to juggle childcare with starting a new business.

When she advertises for a lodger to help make ends meet, along comes the seemingly delightful Hedy - but quickly we see that all is not as it seems and their new friendship takes a sinister turn.

So, does portraying someone who appears lovely but might have a darker side come hard to Kym, who was one of the most popular characters, Michelle Connor, in Coronation Street for 13 years, has won a multitude of acting awards and, amongst other things, has starred in Waterloo Road, Strictly Come Dancing and presented BBC One’s Morning Live?

“Actually the last few roles I have done have been pretty villainous and I love it,” she says.

“It’s so easy to play the typical moustache twiddler. But I want to make Hedy a little bit more layered and actually have people be a bit taken aback, unsure if she’s good or bad right up to the last minute and even feeling sorry for her, particularly near the end. So, it is a bit more complex and nuanced than you might imagine.”

How did she end up being asked to take on such an interesting and chilling role, that thrilled audiences in the 1992 worldwide hit movie?

“After I played Alex Forrest in the stage version of Fatal Attraction, we started to have discussions about what potential other projects there might be and we came up with the idea of Single White Female because it had never been done before,” she explains.

“It was also within that kind of genre of those epic, classic films that had a real impact on people at that time. So I have been attached to it from the start and it’s really exciting - the character of Hedy is so interesting and challenging to play.

“Without giving too much away to anyone who hasn’t seen the film, the character is very complex and, from an acting point of view, it gives me an opportunity to explore so many different places that you don’t necessarily really go to normally.”

The new, stage version of Single White Female will appeal to a new generation who have never seen the movie, but it will also give a new perspective to fans of the original film, as it has been updated by author, journalist and broadcaster, Rebecca Reid, with a focus on social media, playing on the themes of ambition, identity and isolation through that lens.

Kym says this has done more than just give it a contemporary spin, it actually makes the story feel even more relevant.

“There obviously wasn’t social media back in the 90s,” she says. “But if you know the essence of the plot and what it’s about, it works very well because we see people trying to imitate people’s lives online all the time.

“We hear about these stories of people ‘catfishing’ and so on and I think there are elements of that within Single White Female that make it feel up to date and its themes are even more relevant today than they were then.

“I think the world of social media is a wonderful place, but it’s also to be handled with care, because there is always that element of danger about it. And when you have a character like Hedy, and then you put social media into her hands, it can be tricky to the point of dangerous.”

Will fans of the original still recognise the film they know and love - and will they be treated to the iconic stiletto moment?

Kym laughs. “The essence is very much still the same. But the story is slightly changed - as well as being more up-to-date, it’s based in the UK rather than being in America. So there are differences but the big, important, epic moments are still in there. And it’s very much still a thriller with a real shock factor - we want to have people on the edge of their seats. I think people will still very much love the story whether they’ve seen the film or not. As for the iconic stiletto moment - you’ll have to wait and see!”

For tickets see swfonstage.com