The Woman In Black, Wolverhampton Grand Theatre - review with pictures and video
Both avid horror fans, my sister and I headed to Wolverhampton's Grand Theatre last night ready to be frightened out of our seats by hit ghost stage show The Woman in Black.
The Woman in Black took the cinema world by storm in 2012 with Harry Potter star Daniel Radcliffe adopting the leading role - but the story originated from the 1983 gothic play written by Susan Hill.
The stage of the Grand Theatre replicated it's simple beginnings - rather than adopting large and intricate sets, the play utilised minimal props and relied solely on lighting, sound and the audience's sheer imagination to chill and horrify.
The story follows a lawyer obsessed with a curse that he believes has been cast over him and his family by the spectre of a Woman in Black - a curse he encounters while sorting the affairs of a lonely deceased woman, in a daunting solitary house surrounded by eerie marshes and moaning winds.
A mystery doused in horror ensues as Kipps uncovers a dark and heart-breaking family secret, wrapped around the Woman in Black and the loss of her beloved son.
The harrowing story is told through the lawyer who experience it all, Arthur Kipps, as he devises a retelling of the story with a man known only as The Actor to inform his family of the horrors that he has gone though.
This play within a play format is shown expertly by the subtle changing of lights within the theatre itself and on stage - changing to a rustic orange for the theatre lights within the play to emulate the time period in which the story is set, and the equipment they would have owned.
Similarly to this is the use of sound first introduced to the play, as muffled recordings are used to accompany their production - to the almost comical delight of the duo.
David Acton who stars as Arthur Kipps first appears a shy and meek actor, and the audience watched his magnificent transformation into a true theatrical genius - both in front of our eyes as Acton and to The Actor as Kipps. Acton portrayed a terrible actor, and a magnificent actor who played a variety of roles within his re-telling - from prosperous land owner Sam Dailly to the timid Mr Gerome, and then to the surly yet comical trap driver - with each role seeing Acton transform remarkably. It would have been easy to believe that various actors were playing these roles, that is how expertly his stage movement and expressions portrayed the characters.
Aside him was the lively Matthew Spencer as The Actor - who adopted the role of Kipps himself throughout their retelling. He endeared the audience immediately with his quick-wit and genuine care for the real Kipps' need to tell his story, which made the horror he faced within the play seem all the more startling.
He commanded the audience's attention with his bellowing voice and dramatic movement as he recited Kipps' monologue, and he gained their sympathy with every spine-tingling scream, every exact footstep towards horror and every muffled sob.
His portrayal of Kipps' descent into madness was almost uncomfortably real and made the hairs on my arms stand on end and tears gather in my eyes.
As they became more engulfed in Kipps' story the sound became more crisp and clear, the lighting became darker with flashes of blood red and the sets became even more advanced - as if their imagination was running wild with the story.
This expert use of sound and lighting really brought the story to life - sound and lighting have a great deal to do with our emotional reception of horror, and the sudden crashes of thunder, roaring screams, creaking footsteps and minimal lighting had me hiding behind my hands multiple times throughout the show.
This horror culminated with the appearance of the Woman herself. Her ghastly white face and flowing black robes made me gasp out loud at her first appearance, and this shock didn't cease throughout the show as I was constantly on the edge of my seat, waiting for the Woman to unleash her revenge.
The Woman in Black somehow combines the humour of a play struggling to take form, the horror of a traditional ghost story and the heart-breaking subjects of loss and love altogether using minimal props and effects with startlingly frightening results.
These effects, coupled with a truly tremendous cast, made for a night I will not forget any time soon.
