Susan Hill's tale The Woman In Black doesn't break the mould of ghost stories nor does it try to - instead, it uses all the conventions to make an eerie and gripping theatre experience. Everything is here - the rocking chair that rocks on its own, a spooky carriage in the mist and the mysterious figure of a woman (in black, obviously).
Paul Webster plays Kipps, a lawyer who hires an actor to help him tell the tragic story of the ghostly events that took place in his youth. So, the story is told in short scenes as they rehearse each part of the tale. At first, this seems to unnecessarily break up the narrative but as the play develops, it helps to provide a respite from the eerieness and becomes essential to the plot.
This production is played for shocks - the audience jumped, screamed and flinched, each time followed by embarrassed and nervous giggling. I didn't believe that a play could excite such a strong reaction - after all that, you wish they could have brought on Nick Ross to say "Don't have nightmares" but a couple of pints across the road had to suffice.
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