Theatre Royal Concert Hall Nottingham – until Saturday 2nd December 2023
Reviewed by Amarjeet Singh
4****
The Woman in Black is a genius piece of theatre. It’s success lies in the beauty of simplicity. The tale is told with minimal means, sparse sets and a credited cast of only two. Meaning that we, as an audience are compelled to engage our imagination to truly bring this gothic ghost story to life. Each of us guaranteed to envisage something different, individually conjuring up the things which would scare us the most.
The story opens with Arthur Kipps, a solicitor, who is determined to have his story heard. A story from an incident in the past that has haunted him relentlessly, invading his every waking moment and infiltrating his dreams. He employs the assistance of an Actor to help tell his story, to ensure people will listen, as it’s a long one, in the hope that he will be free from its torment and can finally be at peace. Thus ensues a tale within a tale told by the Actor playing Kipps and Kipps playing every other role, merging the here and now, imagination and reality, finally unravelling the truth behind the Woman in Black.
Malcolm James as Arthur Kipps and Mark Hawkins as The Actor were sublime. Both produced stellar performances with seamless scene transitions, never missing a step nor a beat. Full of passion, they were enthralling to watch and fully captivated the audience. Kevin Sleep and Sebastian Frost’s use of light and sound respectively were crucial to add body, tension, and atmospheric dread to this production. There are several moments where the audience shrieked in fear and times where they sat on the edge of their seats not wanting to look but not being able to look away. The intimacy and intensity of being in a theatre only heightened this sensation.
My only issue with this production was the titular “Woman in Black” herself. Without giving away any spoilers I think she was excessively utilised thus losing the true shock factor. It became a tad farcical at the end which was a huge shame as her early presence was everything you could have hoped for.
However, that aside, The Woman in Black is a well-crafted and thoroughly enjoyable ghost story. Deceptively playful and chillingly charming, its an atmospheric theatrical triumph of gothic glory