Watch a time warp unfold on stage when a play with a metaphysical twist comes to the Abbey Theatre this week.

Actors and stage hands from The Company of Ten will have the challenging task of switching back and forth from 1919 to 1938 in the blink of an eye as they perform JB Priestley’s Time and the Conways.

The gripping family drama, showing Britain between the wars, revolves around the lives and loves of Mrs Conway and her six grown-up children. In Act I, it is Kay Conway’s 21st birthday in 1919 and the family is looking forward to a prosperous future. In Act II, the action moves forward in time to the same night 19 years later, when the fate of each of the siblings is revealed. Unusually, Act III then takes the audience back to the original party, armed with new and disturbing insights.

The piece was inspired by the writer JW Dunne’s theory that all time takes place simultaneously, and in certain circumstances – for example, when we dream – it’s possible to catch sight of our future.

Director Mark Waghorn has decided to make a feature of the switch between time periods.

“As Acts I and II both take place in the first half, the easiest solution would have been to bring down the tabs and change the set behind the scenes,” he says.

“But we wanted to convey the dream-like state in which Priestley and Dunne believed it was possible to see into the future. So instead of using black-clad stagehands, our set is changed by our actors, moving at half-speed and silhouetted against a blue light.

“Furniture is rearranged, curtains are flown in, and pictures and soft furnishings are replaced, as we move from the optimism of 1919 – reflected by soft edges and warm, bright colours – to the austere, foreboding atmosphere of 1938, which is harder, duller and greyer.”

It is not only the set that changes, of course. “All but one of our cast is playing different versions of the same person almost 20 years apart, which is a real test of skill. While costumes and hairstyles help to reflect the changes in their characters’ age and circumstances, the actors also have to consider how the passing of time will have affected the way they move and speak.

“Interestingly, some of our actors are closer in age to the younger version of their character, while others are closer to the older version. I think it is testament to their ability that, when watching them together on stage, you wouldn’t notice.”

Abbey Theatre, Westminster Lodge, Holywell Hill, St Albans, February 6 to 7, 8pm, February 8, 2.30pm and February 10 to 14, 8pm. Details: 01727 857861, abbeytheatre.org.uk