 |
ARCHIVAL WEBSITE |
|||||||
|
|
||||||||
| Box Office | Calendar | Playfest | Education | Organization | Archives | Directions | Contact Us | |
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Presented by Prepare for a fright night in the company of a specter in a black coat and wasted face as a haunted man employs an actor to help him exorcise the fear that has gripped his soul. It's a flesh-creeping journey to eerie marshlands, amid moaning winds and silence-shattering screams...a ghost ride that will keep you jumping with fear. Opens September 22 - October 28
*denotes member of Date: September 28, 2000 Reviewed by: Eyal Goldshmid, Orlando CitySearch The Shakespeare Festival Delivers the Scares in this Masterful |
| Pictured: Eric Hissom A Gothic play-within-a-play ghost story from the pen of Susan Hill. In it, Mr. Kipps (Eric Hissom) has written a script about his paranormal encounters in the English countryside. He gives the play to an actor (Richard Width) and together the two perform the tale. Kipps hopes that doing so will help him purge his memories of the events. Hissom and Width are phenomenal, in roles that mix much physicality and tenderness. Most impressive is how the actors use comedic rhythms to build tension in the story. Hissom masterfully weaves through a bevy of unique personalities, include a lead role and all of the play's supporting bits—a real accomplishment. Width begins as a stereotype and gradually brings depth to his character as the plot thickens. His transformation proves so effective that it actually doubles as a | commentary on the craft of acting. Kathleen Kaplan, as the title's "Woman in Black," provides plenty of hair-raising moments, despite not saying a word in the entire play. Director Michael Carleton crafts the play into both a traditional ghost tale and a post-modern reflection on storytelling. The conceit works flawlessly. As the story unfolds, one marvels at the masterful juxtapositions between the ghost story, the relationship between the characters and the work's thoughts on theater and acting. The scares are genuine, particularly the show-stopping sight-and-sound hauntings in the second act. Other moments creep you out so much you'll be glancing into the shadows of the theater to see what lurks there—in some cases, you'll be surprised with what you find. |
|
Last Updated: 05/06/2007 Copyright Orlando Shakespeare Theater |
