Legend of town 'witch' retold in community opera

The cast have been adapting different types of rumours that were spread around about the accused witch Molly Leigh.

An opera based on the legend of a Stoke-on-Trent witch in the 1600s opens to audiences on Wednesday.

The story of Margaret "Molly" Leigh is shrouded in myth and conjecture. She was born in Burslem in about 1685, and as she grew older she became a landowner but never married.

She became ostracised by people in the town, which was thought to be because she looked "different", and rumours about her being a witch spread.

Those behind the contemporary performance at B-Arts on Hartshill Road said it would explore these as well as the theme of being different in the modern day.

Francesca Le Lohé is one of the directors and was drawn to the links between legend and the modern day.

Francesca Le Lohé is the composer and co-director of the performance.

When she first came across the story of the accused witch, she said she felt immediately drawn to it.

"Molly's story is all rumour. It's all fabricated, everything we know about her is from everyone else's point of view".

"I thought it's really interesting that you have got all these different perspectives but we don't know how Molly would have described herself," she said.

Ms Le Lohé added that she and others created the opera with the aim that it would help people investigate the rumours and devise their own opinions of the legend.

Maurice Greenham used to have a career in the West End

Maurice Greenham is chair of the North Midlands LGBT+ Older Peoples Group and is one of those taking part in the performance.

The 80-year-old once had a career in the West End in his 30s, and now finds himself treading the boards again after he was drawn to the parallels between Molly Leigh and the LGBT+ community.

The performer said he felt as if Molly Leigh was an outsider, an attribute he believed connected her to how people in that community feel.

"There's all sorts of clues there, so nowadays I regard her as part of the LGBT community," Mr Greenham said.

Performances of the show run until Sunday.