Zachariah Sheldon: A dark musical tale of death

IN 1856, Shipston wine merchant Zachariah Sheldon brutally murdered his wife, her lover and an eyewitness. The victims’ bodies were only discovered six weeks after their murders when the cellars in which they were stowed were being cleaned.

The rather gruesome story has been turned into a Sweeney Todd-style musical by Cloud8 Theatre Company, and recently had its premiere in Stratford’s Attic Theatre. The script was written by Anthony Wilkes, with musical direction from Mark Newton.

Speaking of how the play was received, Anthony told the Herald: “The performances went better than we could have imagined and the feedback and responses have been nothing but ‘fantastic show’ and ‘amazing acting’ , which the hardworking cast definitely deserved.”

He continued: “We are hoping to take it to other venues in the local area in 2017, maybe around Nuneaton, Bedworth and Kenilworth, and get a soundtrack recording done over Christmas too, but myself and Dean (we’re both the directors of Cloud8) are looking to do several more original projects too.”

For more on the play and upcoming performance news, see www.zachariahsheldon.com