Heidi Van is the writer, director and performer of Bloody, Bloody Kansas, which opens at Camden Fringe next month.
“Dive into the dark heart of American history. 1873 – Kansas.
Based on the true story of the West’s first known serial killing family, the Bloody Benders, this bold new play shatters time and space to reveal the chilling legacy they left behind.”
Where: Hen & Chickens Theatre
When: 28-31 Jul, 2 Aug
Ticket link: https://camdenfringe.com/events/hells-half-acre/
Read on for more for Heidi.
What is your play about and what inspired it?
Bloody Bloody Kansas is a haunting, poetic thriller rooted in true history.
It unearths the story of the Bloody Benders—America’s first known serial killer family who operated a remote inn on the Kansas frontier in the 1870s, murdering travelers and burying them beneath their home.
But this isn’t just a story of gruesome crime—it’s a story of how America was built. The Benders were part of a larger, government-backed movement to “settle” Kansas by any means necessary.
In that lawless, violent push for Manifest Destiny, the conditions for horror were not just allowed—they were created.
Told through the eyes of Mary York, a widow seeking the truth about her husband’s disappearance, the play becomes a séance for the silenced—a reckoning with how power, patriarchy, and policy shaped the country’s darkest corners.
I was inspired by the eerie gaps in the historical record and the chilling reality that we still don’t know what happened to the Benders.
This show asks: what happens when a nation builds itself on buried bodies—and never looks back?
Why should someone book to see your show and what might they expect?
If you’re drawn to true crime—Bloody Bloody Kansas is for you. This isn’t just a murder mystery; it’s a theatrical excavation.
We take real events from America’s violent frontier past and blend them with haunting stagecraft, poetic language, and a ghost story that refuses to rest.
You’ll meet figures both real and imagined: murderers, victims, and those caught in between.
Audiences can expect suspense, beauty, and a deeper reckoning with how the American project was built—not just on dreams, but on disappearance.
How did you make your start in the business?
I knew my life would be in the theatre the moment I stepped into the Gate Theatre in Notting Hill in 1998.
I was a study-abroad student with an internship as a production assistant, and it cracked something open in me.
That tiny venue, filled with bold, risky work and fiercely independent voices, showed me the power of fringe theatre—and I’ve been chasing that ever since.
Like a lot of artists, I started on the edges. I built my own stages. I said yes to every opportunity that scared me. I was drawn to the shadows—where stories hide, and where truth feels dangerous.
Over time, I carved out space for the kind of theatre I believe in: raw, fiercely theatrical and unafraid! Bloody Bloody Kansas is the result of that journey.
Do you have a favourite type of venue to work in?
Anywhere that’s intimate, raw, and alive. I’m drawn to spaces where you can feel the breath of the actors—where the walls hold memory and the audience is part of the atmosphere.
Black box theatres, old chapels, lingerie shops, storefront windows… I’ve worked in them all, and I love when the venue becomes a character in the story.
Bloody Bloody Kansas thrives in spaces that feel like they’ve lived a little—places with creaking floorboards, strange corners, or echoes of another time.
Because in this play, the past isn’t just a backdrop—it’s an active force. And it never stays buried.
What’s next for the show?
Bloody Bloody Kansas is just beginning its journey—and we’re taking audiences with us, one séance at a time. The ghosts are restless, and this story still has miles to travel.