King’s Theatre, Edinburgh – until 9 November 2019
Reviewed by James Knight
4****
It’s arguably the scariest film ever made, that had people walking out of cinemas and straight into churches. So how do you put William Peter Blatty’s infamous novel onstage?
Kick off proceedings with a loud bang, apparently. That’ll scare the audience into submission, ready for the nightmare to begin.
The stage is semi-lit almost all the way through, the set deliberately misleading as to where doors and stairways might lead to. Everything is put in place for the audience to be put on the wrong foot. Regan’s room is optically skewed just enough to be off-putting.
We’re introduced firstly to Father Damien Karras (Ben Caplan), at his mother’s funeral. He’s overwhelmed with grief, believing there was more he could have done to help her in her last days – easy pickings for a demonic presence to shame him for later. And then, we meet Regan MacNeil (Susannah Edgley) and her movie star mother Chris (Sophie Ward). Regan doesn’t like the house they’ve been put in by the studio. It’s old. There’s strange noises. We all know what’s going to happen, it’s just when and how it happens…
So many think pieces have been written about The Exorcist over the years, but in Regan’s first encounter with the demon (‘Captain Howdy’ as it introduces itself), there’s the quite clear implication of child sexual abuse. The demon asks if they can have a competition – Regan wins, she gets a prize. A visit from her absent father, promises Captain Howdy. But if Regan loses, he gets a prize instead. “What prize?” asks Regan. “Will you let me touch you?” comes the insidious reply.
It’s a chilling scene, brought magnificently to life by Edgley and a certain recognisable voice – Lord of the Rings will never be the same again. Later in the play, the inhuman presence possessing Regan gets even nastier, and, most terrifying of all, enjoys the pain it brings on others.
The tension is racked up throughout the first act, with Regan threatening film director Burke Dennings (Tristram Wymark) with a simple “You’re going to die soon”, then asking what a ‘soda-mite’ is. Wymark pitches Burke Dennings’ campness perfectly, so when the threat is made good, his loss is felt.
With the emotional terror begun, the special effects can let loose. Shadows move independently, writing appears on the wall in blood or faeces, and the most chilling effect from the film recreated as a punishment upon Regan from the demon.
Incredibly, the effects don’t detract from the serious and interesting questions the play has about faith, religion, love and psychology. The stakes are made very clear, and if there is a pitfall to the production is that it ends far, far too abruptly. The character of Father Merrin (Paul Nicholas), the demon’s nemesis, is introduced properly far too late for the audience to have any real connection to him. However, it is testament to Nicholas’ commanding stage presence that he makes an impact at all. (Fun side note: Paul Nicholas was the original Jesus in Jesus Christ Superstar, meaning you can now see The Son of God vs The Devil Live Onstage!)
It’s a shame that the goodwill built up by the production is squandered slightly towards the end, but strong performances and incredible effects will leave you wanting to sleep with the lights on.
After all, watching someone’s head spin 360 degrees will not leave you unaffected…