What better time to debate the fate of Jinnie, the infamous and fabled Manx witch, than in the run up to Hop-Tu-Naa.

In preparation for Manx National Heritage’s seasonal celebrations of all things spooky and arcane, the Labyrinth History In Action theatre group will hold a special evening of performance, telling the story of Jinnie the Witch during an evening of food and theatre, in the marquee at Cregneash.

Led by narrator Katie King, the actors will perform an innovative re-telling of the story of the accusation and trial of Joney Lowney, whose fame is remembered through the traditional Hop-Tu-Naa song.

This year marks 300 years since the trials took place, in 1717, and Katie thought it would be fitting to mark the date with a fresh look at Joney, and will use the play to let the audience decide whether or not she was harshly treated.

’People who have been to a Labyrinth event before will know that normally we have small audiences, and that the guide takes people on a tour around a certain property, where they will encounter actors who bring the stories to life,’ said Katie.

’ This time we will weave our way through the crowd, interacting and telling our story with the audience.

’We are going to work in the song, and the legend of Jinnie the Witch throughout the performance.

’It will be quite a light hearted performance. It won’t be a spooky evening, and we are not going to be heavy with the treatment of women in those times, even though what women, accused of witchcraft in England went though was horrendous.

’But it will have some good atmosphere and we are introducing elements of theatre to help the story along.

’It is very interesting how it was treated at the time, and how the rumour mill of the island worked to create this figure.’

Nine actors and actresses will perform the roles, including Lulu Gillow as a Witchfinder and Brian Kelly, as Bishop Wilson, who oversaw the trial.

’No one is playing Jinnie herself,’ said Katie, who will be taking the audience through the story and explaining what is going on through some of the scenes.

’We deliberately haven’t cast a Joney, as we don’t know what she looked like, and we don’t know her age. So we are going with the idea that Joney, Jinnie the Witch, could have been any one of us, almost along the lines of ’I Am Spartacus’. And, at the end, we all choose her fate.’

The play takes place at Cregneash on Friday, October 27.

Tickets for the night, which begins at 6.30pm, cost £30, available from manxnationalheritage.im

Contact Katie on 648000 for more information.

In case of bad weather, the play will take place in the Sound restaurant.

by MIke Wade

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