Wednesday 24 October 2018

REVIEW: Fell - Antwerp Mansion, Manchester.



With Halloween creeping upon us, the time is right for a chilling horror play. Obscura Theatre’s debut production, 'Fell', wisely mines the British folk-horror sub-genre of such 1970s films as Blood on Satan’s Claw and, most tellingly, The Wicker Man to deliver to its audience a spine-tingling and astonishing piece of theatre.

Much like The Wicker Man, 'Fell' involves a police officer sent to a remote location (here it is a rural community in Cumbria rather than the remote Scottish island in the 1973 celluloid classic) in search of a missing girl. While the initial premise may echo that of The Wicker Man, this production is strong enough to stand on its own and develops its tale in a different direction, with elements which seem to take influence from the stories of MR James and even the works of David Lynch (the play’s revisiting of its opening scene with subtle variations recalled aspects of last year’s mind-melting series of Twin Peaks).

The production team, led by director Alex Hurst, have gone above and beyond to ensure that 'Fell' drips with atmosphere: before the play even began, the audience were led upstairs (‘the fell’) to the performance area by two of the ‘Crewformers’ – mainly responsible for the set changes, they also doubled-up as extra characters throughout the play. The set consisted of a large frame upstage, covered and decorated to look like a mountainous fell, from which a box frame and furniture would be taken on and off-stage as each scene unfolded, and a door which, again, would be moved around by the Crewformers depending on where the next scene took place. Technically, the play is a marvel: a smoke machine created a mist which enveloped the stage, while the lighting design and the soundscape helped to heighten the tension and chills as the play unfolded.

Crewformers aside, the play features just two lead actors: the imposing Sean McGlynn as Jacob Beckett, the man whose daughter has gone missing, and Florence Rose King who, as police officer Jane Shipley, carries the majority of the dialogue in the play. The script, written by Patch Middleton (who was also the sound designer), is told from Shipley’s point of view and the dialogue often requires King to address Shipley’s thoughts, as her investigation into the disappearance of Alice Beckett proceeds, to the audience. King gave a very impressive performance as Shipley, especially as the strange events around the fell begin to take their toll on her. McGlynn, too, did well as the distraught (or was that disturbed?) Beckett, veering from taciturn to overtly friendly (‘Cup of tea?’ almost became a catchphrase for his character) from one moment to the next.

In addition to the strong lighting and sound effects work, the play required the Crewformers to display skill with puppetry during the play as two animalistic beings and their physical movements as these creatures were fantastically creepy. With the acting and technical effect already being of a high standard, seeing puppetry done so well was a bonus. The true star of the show, however, had to be the sound design – the surround sound of footsteps on gravel in the darkness at the start of the play, the use of music, the creaking of floorboards, all helped to immerse the audience in the world of the play. The soundscape was so atmospheric that it was worthy of an audio drama.

There were, however, a couple of quibbles: sometimes the sound effects were too high for the actors to be heard over them, especially towards the end where some key lines from McGlynn were lost in amongst the soundscape. One other gripe, personally, was that some of Shipley’s dialogue felt a bit too much like exposition in places, usually when she was talking to Beckett where Shipley’s thoughts explained what we’d just seen and heard between Beckett and herself. Yet, taking a holistic view of the production, these quibbles are just that: minor quibbles. 'Fell' gives us an interesting story with some nice touches in the dialogue of Middleton’s script, strong performances from its leads and supporting players and crew members, chilling creature design and performance, and heavily atmospheric sound and lighting effects.

Obscura Theatre’s debut production is bold and unlike anything seen by this reviewer within fringe venues in Manchester before. 'Fell' is a stunning, atmospheric, and thoroughly exciting and engaging piece of theatre. If you feel like getting some pre-All Hallows' Eve thrills and chills, then 'Fell' is highly recommended. Hopefully, this production is the first of many successes for Obscura Theatre.

Reviewer - Andrew Marsden
on - 23/10/18

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