The large, exposed brick wall and tall, arched windows of The Boys' School in Smock Alley is a set in itself. Silent Chuckler Theatre Company's production of The Turn of the Screw by Henry James, adapted here by Jeffrey Hatcher, feels it is the case as well; there is no set, only a blank playing space and that impressive back wall, which in many ways is ideal for this Victorian style ghost story that is intriguing and intense.A Governess is hired by a man living in Harley Street to take charge of his niece and nephew down at Bly Manor. Smitten by the children's Uncle she agrees, even though he will never contact her, nor wish the same in return. She travels to the Manor, the only other adult there being Mrs. Grose, the housekeeper. She then meets Flora, who cannot speak, and ten year old Miles, who she feels is perfect, but has been expelled from school for reasons not mentioned in the letter, and reasons he will not speak of. It is clear there are things 'The Master' has not told her, such as the strange tale of the death of the last governess. Then she sees in the grounds of the house the figure of a man, but who, or what can he be?
From the opening moment, there are long Gothic notes as a man and a woman take the stage, before the man addresses the audience, reminding me of the opening of Wildhorn's Jekyll and Hyde musical, in both music style and delivery of lines. While there is no set, the costumes by Samantha Kennedy are wonderful, conveying immediately the time and place, and looking very elegant. In those first few minutes, if you didn't know much about the story, a number of aspects would be clear enough, or at least the direction of the tale, which is no mean feat, and lets us settle back.
The language of the piece again keeps us in the era well, due to the turns of phrases and sentence structures reminding us of the literary origins, with the odd phrase not working quite so well, some inducing smiles, although the Jane Eyre reference is a nice touch. Despite the descriptiveness of some of the passages, it all moves along at a fine pace, helping to keep that intensity going, particularly as their are only two actors involved.
Irene Kelleher's Governess starts optimistically, smitten by the man, a twinkle in her eye as if off on an adventure, but by degrees, the turning of the screw, becomes less certain, more frightened and worse, all played with intensity and very earnestly, coming out in her tone, moving from light to sharp, in a very good performance that engages all of her body, down to her fingertips. Even though her lines are delivered at a good pace, nothing is lost, they come over crystal clear, and projection is not an issue at all. In one heightened moment her voice echoes off the exposed brick and high ceiling of the space, adding to the moment. It is a great, classical performance, and the core that keeps it all going.
All other characters are played by Mark Griffin: The Master, Mrs. Grose and Miles. In all cases it is how he stands, or holds his hands, that denotes the character he is, while vocally, there is not much difference, and the thought does occur that maybe more would be betters. It is as Miles, the boy who is different, that he works best.
Everything else is kept simple as well, the lights showing different aspects for different moments of time, which work effectively; the sound playing a bigger part, the foreboding music, the carriages, all designed by Kieran Prendergast. The style is kept in check by director Killian Collins all the way through.
The tension is kept up well, helped by Kelleher's wonderful performance and the atmosphere created by all involved. It all moves along at a good pace, not too fast, but more importantly, not too slow. In this instance not having an interval is a good choice. It is by turns a ghost story and a mystery in a classic Victorian styling. If it is your thing, then it is worth a visit.
Runs until 25th November
Photo Courtesy of Silent Chuckler Theatre Company/Mark Griffin