Screams echo through corridors and lives are torn apart.
A teenage boy shatters a community by bringing a gun to a choir rehearsal and randomly opening fire, killing several of its members.
Claire, the liberal vicar who runs the choir, survives but is traumatised, obsessively churning over what happened in a bid to understand why he did it.
This is the premise of the hard-hitting play The Events, based on real gun massacres. It鈥檚 a bold new work which delves into the nature of forgiveness and reconciliation.
The catalyst for the play, which is coming to Birmingham Rep, was the shooting in Norway in 2011 when Anders Breivik killed 77 people.
Neve McIntosh, who plays Claire, says: 鈥淲riter David Greig and director Ramin Gray met shortly afterwards and wanted to do something about it.
鈥淚鈥檝e read up on Breivik and also Dunblane, which was so close to me. I remember that happening and thinking 鈥楽urely this can鈥檛 be happening in Scotland?鈥. But it can happen anywhere.
鈥淲hen we were performing in Oxford, the Westgate massacre was happening in Kenya.鈥
The play is an emotional one, not least because of the addition of local community choirs. A different one is recruited each night to perform and they choose their own music.
In Birmingham, it will be Cantare Community Choir, Birmingham Ormiston Academy, In Sound Company and Coventry Singing City.
Neve explains: 鈥淚 don鈥檛 know what the choirs are going to sing, so it keeps it fresh for me.
鈥淭he choirs open with a song of their choosing which is usually beautiful, but I have to harden my heart to it and think 鈥榠t鈥檚 not affecting me at all鈥.
鈥淭he challenge for me is not connecting with my emotions. Claire talks about losing her soul and feeling numb, so I can鈥檛 allow myself an emotional release until the end of the play.
鈥淭he massacre has completely shattered her world. She goes through the whole gamut of reasons, trying to find out why the boy attacked the choir. It also touches on issues of immigration, as he says he 鈥榟ates foreigners being here鈥.
鈥淲e have a different community choir every night. In Edinburgh we had Soweto Melodic Voices, which was extraordinary, and we鈥檝e had homeless choirs. People singing in harmony can be very powerful.鈥
The Events was a huge success at the Edinburgh Festival, gaining plaudits including 鈥渄eeply moving鈥 and 鈥渇iendishly brilliant鈥, and has since been performed in Glasgow, Oxford, Dublin and at the Young Vic in London.
Future dates include Hull, Bristol and Plymouth, plus the Studio at Birmingham Rep from November 19-23.
Coming to the city will be a new experience for Neve, 41, whose TV credits include Gormenghast, Bodies and Single Father.
鈥淚 have never been to Birmingham before and I鈥檓 really looking forward to it,鈥 she says.
鈥淚鈥檓 always driving past it on the motorway when I go back up north, but the closest I鈥檝e got is Lichfield, where I was performing at the Garrick. They told me I should go shopping in the Bullring but I didn鈥檛 even manage to get into Birmingham for the day.
鈥淚 take a foldable bike with me on tour, so I will be able to explore the city properly.
鈥淚 want to investigate the new library, and I love chocolate so Cadbury World has to be on my list too!鈥
Recently Neve has been specialising, though not deliberately, in playing lesbians. Claire is her third consecutive lesbian role, after appearing in the BBC drama Lip Service and playing Madame Vastra, the lizard-like lesbian detective who is a recurring character in Doctor Who. She was also a man-hater in this week鈥檚 Ripper Street.
鈥淚鈥檓 starting to wonder if I鈥檓 cornering
the market in lesbians!鈥 says Neve, who鈥檚 divorced. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 mind, I鈥檒l play anyone.
鈥淚 love playing Madame Vastra. Although I do suffer, spending three and a half hours in make-up every morning to have her lizard skin put on. I was so excited the first day when we did the make-up test, but after six hours I was like 鈥楥an we finish now?鈥
鈥淭aking it off is the worst part, when they poke brushes into all my crevices to get all the stuff out. It hurts my skin.
鈥淏ut it is the most fun to do and I can鈥檛 thank Stephen Moffat enough. He鈥檚 already said Madame Vastra will return in the next series, so I鈥檓 waiting to find out when. Come on!
鈥淯nfortunately I鈥檓 not in the 50th
anniversary episode, which is a shame, but everyone else is in it and there鈥檚 a limit to
how many they can put in the cast 鈥 it鈥檚 chocker!
鈥淚 can鈥檛 wait to work with Peter Capaldi as the next Doctor. I know him from old, he鈥檚 such a lovely man and will be brilliant in the role. As long as he tones down the Malcolm Tucker swearing.鈥
* The Events plays Birmingham Rep from November 19-23. For tickets ring 0121 236 4455 or to go .
