JULIET Stevenson has seen most things during a career on stage, TV and film which has seen her win numerous awards and establish her as one of the country’s leading actors.

But nothing could have prepared her for Mary Stuart which is heading to the Lowry as part of a major UK tour.

For at every performance, Juliet and co-star Lia Williams, must wait for the toss of a coin before they know which of the two lead roles - Mary Stuart or Elizabeth I - they will play that night.

“The company come on stage first,” said Juliet, “then Lia and I come on and one of us calls and the coin is tossed.

“The audience and the actors are in the same boat at the beginning. None of us know what way it is going to go. It really gives everyone an adrenalin shot.

“I think the weirdest moment was press night in the West End which is a big moment for any show.”

The production has been running at the Almeida Theatre before heading out on the road around the country.

“I just thought hang on a minute, I’m heading for my press night in the West End and I don’t know what part I’m going to play – that is a surreal feeling,” she said.

To many actors that uncertainty may be terrifying but for Juliet it has had the reverse effect.

“Actually there is also a freedom in it,” she said. “You just have to go with the flow.

“If you are playing Mary that night you have three or four minutes after the coin toss to get ready for it but if you’re Elizabeth you have got a whole act to go back to your dressing room and turn your head around. You have about 30 minutes so you have time to recalibrate.”

With the possibility of playing one of two lead roles each night, one thing Juliet was determined to do was not have a particular favourite.

“My only goal when the idea was first put to me was not to have a favourite,” she said. “I didn’t want my heart to be in my mouth when that coin was spinning. It would so tedious to have a longing for it to go one way or another.”

Juliet hasn’t been keeping count over which character she has played most.

“I think the stage manager has,” she said. “But it’s amazing how it levels out. Although there was one week I had Elizabeth after every single coin toss.”

With two different actresses potentially playing either lead role, initial rehearsals were complicated affairs.

“Lia and I were kept apart in rehearsals,” said Juliet. “We never watched each other and we still don’t. I’ve never seen her play either Elizabeth or Mary. I have no idea what she does.

“But that’s what Rob (director Robert Icke) wanted from the outset. He rightly thought there is no point doing this if you are getting the same performance from both of us. The whole point is to get two very different versions.”

Mary Stuart by German playwright Friedrich Schiller is a fictional account of the last days of Mary Queen of Scots and her Sister Queen Elizabeth.

“The only time the two queens meet in the play is for one scene,” said Juliet, “which is the only part of each other’s performances we’ve seen.”

As well as the unique coin toss, the other unusual aspect of Mary Stuart is the fact that there are two female leads.

Juliet has been a passionate campaigner for women in theatre.

“I think things are moving in the right direction but there is a lot, lot further to go,” she said.

“Most theatre is still run by men. Most of the people making decisions as to what to put on are making judgements based on their own sensibilities and they may not recognise it’s all about recognising what is good or worthwhile.”

One way round the apparent lack of strong female roles in theatre has been to introduce more gender flexibility with women playing traditionally male roles.

“I think gender fluidity can work,” said Juliet, “but my point really is they are still male stories.

“I don’t think it’s particularly the answer for a women to play Hamlet or King Lear because they are still men’s stories and seen through the eyes of men. That’s not the same as telling women’s stories written from the point of view of a woman.

“Ultimately we need more women writers.”

Juliet is loving the idea of taking an established West End hit out on the road.

“Out of town audiences are very different,” she said. “They are so hungry, so receptive, so engaged. They don’t have the same crazy mountain of choices as London perhaps has and their hunger to see a really good play affects you as an actor. You can feel it when you are out there on stage.

“I’m incredibly excited about coming up to the Lowry.

“Between you and me it’s the one venue I’m most looking forward to. I love Manchester and I’ve often worked there but I’ve never played the Lowry before.

“Audiences in Manchester are always really bright. I have a bit of a happy history with the city.”

Mary Stuart, the Lowry, Salford Quays, Tuesday, April 17 to Saturday, April 21. Details from 0843 208 6000 or www.thelowry.com