Singing, dancing and a 1940s jazz-inspired soundtrack will bring a different slant to the classic tale of Dr Faustus at the Maltings Arts Theatre in St Albans next Saturday, March 1.

St Albans-based company, Foot in the Door Theatre, well-known for its open air performances in the Vintry Garden last summer, will be part of the theatre’s core fringe programme with the Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus

When Faustus, a brilliant but arrogant academic, gets the opportunity to learn more about magic and the universe than any of his peers, it seems a chance too good to miss. But the price for such wisdom and riches is a high one – his soul.

Faustus sells his soul to Lucifer and in return is given Mephistopheles, the devil’s servant, as his companion. But as the years go by and the adventures of these unlikely friends draw to a close, there is only so much time left before Faustus must pay his debt.

Foot in the Door’s version of the Christopher Marlowe play can be seen at 2pm and 7.30pm with a question and answer session with the director and cast members aimed at students studying the text will follow the matinee.

Tickets at £11 with concessions £9 are available online via www.ticketsource.co.uk/ovo and more information can be found at www.maltingsartstheatre.co.uk