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Latest items? Unedited? Fringe Report Uncut
The Night Falls Here
Verdict: Captivating, entrancing horror
Dipton, Co Durham - The Store - 24 Nov to 3 Dec 05 - 20:00
Touring dates include:
Whitley Bay Playhouse (www.whitleybayplayhouse.co.uk) - 19-21 Jan 06 - 19:30
Berwick-upon-Tweed (www.maltingsberwick.co.uk) - Maltings Theatre - 26 Jan 06 - 19:30
It is 1957. In the living quarters of a remote lighthouse are three men. Billy Tam (David Whittaker) and Dobson (David Napthine) tease the much younger Ross (George McGuire). Ross complains 'You've insulted Buddy Holly'. Billy replies 'He'll live'. As they get drunk, the teasing verges on violence. Ross misses his girlfriend. Persuaded to call on all the powers to give him a life-changing experience (and a woman), he performs a ritual. The sound of distant singing and atmospheric music from a cello-like viola da gamba accompanies them to bed.
That afternoon, a pawn from the chess-set is left on the table. They find a thigh bone on the stairs. It's a joke - they accuse each other. As they search for an intruder, the creepy viola da gamba music returns. A white ghost-like girl (Lyndsey Lennon) comes from the shadows. They still think it's a joke - or someone washed up from the sea. The girl is silent, detached, unearthly.
She remains impassive to their questions. When they get too close, she snarls. Everyone jumps. 'Why did you call me' she asks? 'How did you rupture the order?'
She turns on the radio - it's an operatic soprano. The lighthouse crew discover that she is Raidne, last of the Sirens. Billy, scared, stabs her - without any effect. Raidne tells Billy (very accurately) of the future, and his family's unpleasant destiny.
In the second act, each man tries to negotiate his way out of the situation. Death, entrapment and destruction follow.
Greg Pullen's sparse solo viola da gamba is never overplayed. It gives sufficient ambience to suggest that worse is to come. It matches the mood of the piece well.
Acting is effective. There's comedy and horror - at times a little overplayed. Lyndsey Lennon gives her mysterious character a powerful, frightening presence.
The Night Falls Here is a passionate modern take on a traditional story originating among people living in isolated places by the sea - an unfogettable tale that transcends its folk origins. Barrie Darke's script has elements of horror film, Victorian melodrama, and modern psychology. It's a rich mixture that captivates - and entrances.
Cast Credits: (alpha order): Lyndsey Lennon – Raidne. George McGuire – Ross. David Napthine – Dobson. David Whittaker – Billy Tamm.
Company Credits: Writer – Barrie Darke. Director – Gordon Poad. Assistant Director – Jessica Tyler. Designer – Daniel Forth. Technical Operators – Drummond 'Ritchie' Orr, Daniel Forth. Music – Greg Pullen. Sound Design – Jez Arrow. Stage Manager - Jessica Tyler. Company – Theatre Cap-a-Pie (www.cap-a-pie.co.uk). Funded by Arts Council (www.artscouncil.org.uk)
END
(c) Peter Andrews 2005
reviewed 24 November 05 / The Store, Durham
Fringe Report (c) Fringe Report 2002-2012
www.fringereport.com
