'The bed itself's a charnel, the sheets shrouds / For murdered carcases,' says the newly married Alsemero as he discovers his bride has had her previous fianc murdered in order to take him to her bed. The Changeling, by Thomas Middleton and William Rowley, is a Jacobean revenge tragedy, and, just as revenge tragedies were the thrillers of their day, so this first death initiates a trail of blood and sex worthy of film noir. Declan Donnellan's new production of the play for Cheek by Jowl at the Barbican emphasises the connection. The set is stripped back and scuzzy, the lighting high-contrast. ...
