THE HEADGATE Young Company will show an adaptation of a Victorian classic. 

Brooke Parratt, lead facilitator for the Headgate Young Company and director of the production was captured by the timelessness of 'Mill on the Floss’. 

She said: “We chose this play because it does resonate with society today, women's struggles to find their place in society.” 

The company will show an adaptation by Helen Edmundson and tell the story of Maggie Tulliver growing up and desperately wanting to be loved. 

Maddy Smith is one of the actors playing Maggie.  

The 19-year-old has been acting for ten years and will also be an assistant director at this year’s panto for the Fringe Festival. 

Like Brooke, she saw a challenge for her and her castmates in taking on this project. 

She said: “Even though there are about 200 years between us, I think the play overall just shows that people haven't really changed their relationships and the way people feel, the way people act towards each other.  

Gazette: Theatre - Actress Maddy Smith (left) and director Brooke Parratt are looking forward to bring 'Mill

“It's still all. The same core emotion, which is really beautiful actually.” 

While trying to work around the 16 to 21-year-olds' schedules and exams, another obstacle was finding the connection between the characters and young actors. 

Maddy said: “You look at characters of about 40-50 years of age. That is quite far away for most of us. 

“I think a lot of us trying to find that physicality and where we needed to sit with the characters to make that differentiation between our younger characters and these older characters. 

"It took a special amount of preparation to still portray them without it being this caricaturist.” 

Mill on the Floss will be performed from Wednesday, August 30, to Saturday, September 2 with an additional afternoon show on Saturday. 

Tickets can be booked online.