The Ghost Train
(Classic Thriller Season)
Theatre Royal
The opening play in Nottingham's Thriller Season, Ghost Train, certainly sent shivers down my spine. The thought that I might have to sit through another three of these plays was absolutely chilling.
The yearly visit by the Colin McIntyre company is a recurring low point in any theatre fan's calendar. Their productions seem to attract people who aren't regular theatre goers and maybe don't realise that they are being offered dross. The fact that they are sponsored by Saga FM perhaps gives you some idea of their target audience.
In case I haven't put you off already, it is only fair to warn you that this review contains spoilers. The most striking feature of these productions is the dreadful over-acting. Whilst they obviously mean this to be ironic, it does get to be quite a drag when done in every production and there's no evidence that they are capable of 'proper' acting. As a consequence, the characters don't evoke sympathy - deadly in thrillers which lose all their suspense when you don't care if the characters live or die.
The play itself is decidedly dated. Lets see if you recognise the storyline: A disused mine. Rumours of ghosts. A criminal gang scaring people away from their operation by faking spooky happenings. A mysterious figure who is unmasked to reveal a sinister-looking man. Hands up everyone who thought of every single episode of 'Scooby Doo'. The plot really is that simple and that full of holes, with a rushed and unlikely conclusion.
Plot devices such as corpses disappearing without explanation are just too predictable. There are occasional moments of (rather dreary) humour, but no real feeling of suspense or mystery. The acting never reaches above the level of third-rate, although Andrew Fettes's portrayal of an irritating young man was quite convincingly irritating. To be fair, many in the audience seemed to enjoy themselves, but I would definitely rate this as one to miss.
The Classic Thriller season limps on until 21st August
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