On Saturday the 4th of August, 1888, the actor Richard Mansfield opened at the Lyceum in London in the stage adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson's shilling-shocker, Strange Case Of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
Although the reviews of the play weren't exactly enthusiastic, everybody was impressed with Richard Mansfield's onstage transformation from Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and back again.
Three days after the play's opening, Martha Tabram was murdered in George Yard, Whitechapel. When, on August the 31st, Mary Nichols was murdered, followed by Annie Chapman on the 8th of September, newspapers began to wonder if a real-life Mr. Hyde might be loose on the streets of London's East End.
Soon, the advertisements for the play were being blamed for having inspired the Whitechapel murderer in his reign of terror, and, in early October. a correspondent actually wrote to the City of London Police to point the finger of blame at Richard Mansfield himself.
In this video, we explore the public and critical response to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and tell how it was that Richard Mansfield came to be a suspect in the Jack the Ripper crimes.
CHAPTERS
00:00 - Introduction
00:44 - Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde First Performed In Boston
01:25 - Richard Mansfield At The Lyceum In London
01:56 - First Night Reviews Of Jekyll And Hyde
05:49 - The Whitechapel Murders Begin
06:41 - Was The Murderer A Real Life Jekyll And Hyde
09:41 - Had Adverts For Plays Inspired The Killer
11:14 - Comparisons Drawn Between The Murders And Jekyll And Hyde
13:59 - Did The Murders Cause DR. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde To Close Early?
14:31 - Richard Mansfield Brings The Play Back
15:23 - Had Jack The Ripper Seen Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde
17:19 - Richard Mansfield Accused Of Being Jack The Ripper
19:11 - An Unfortunate Incident
21:02 - Dr. Edward C. Spitzka’s Opinion
22:18 - Debate As To Whether Violence On Stage Inspired Crime
22:49 - Murders Used To Promote Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde
24:24 - Richard Mansfield Returns To America
24:59 - Conclusion
25:30 - Closing Credits
