THEATRE REVIEW: The Woman In Black

Now and then, if an audience is very lucky, everything comes together in a production. THE WOMAN IN BLACK at Millbrook Playhouse is one of the rare examples. Script, lighting, sound, sets, and acting all combined to make this a ghost story worthy of its genre.

THE WOMAN IN BLACK was a new play for me and since the suspense of not knowing what was going to happen added to the enjoyment I will not give you a summary of the story. You will have to experience that for yourself.

Two characters, plus maybe a third, tell of the horrible happenings in a Victorian house located in an isolated marshland in England. The setting is a stage, bare except for some mismatched chairs, a trunk, a small desk of sorts, and assorted odds and ends. 

 

The set was the first thing to impress me as I walked to my seat. The feeling of an ornate Victorian stage was perfect. With the aid of lighting and sound effects, your imagination turned the stage into everything from offices, swampy marshland, nice hotels, and back to the stage. 

 

Characters appeared through the addition of a cigar, a pair of glasses, a beat up hat, and a subtle change in body movement and accent. The ability of the actors to carry these changes was very impressive.

Chris Corporandy was a new name for me, but I will be watching for him. This, my friends, appears to be an actor on his way to fame. His delivery made the lines ring with energy and flow like poetry. 

 

Frank Franconeri is well known to Millbrook audiences. He has proven that he can hold his own as a character actor. In THE WOMAN IN BLACK he has a chance to show his versatility as an actor and his masterful use of dialect. He has really impressed me over the last few years.

One of the tricks to this play is to get the audience to switch from the two men talking about what happened in the past to scenes from that past. At times it was the simple hand direction that brought up the “stage lights” or the swift relocation of a stage prop and the physical change in one of the actors. It worked; I never felt confused as to what was happening. In less talented hands the time and place changes could have been a disaster.

One picky little note; I am not always aware of anachronisms but the use of Velcro was a jarring bit. I wish the mourning band had been tied around the arm, simple and authentic. (I told you that it was picky).

The Cabaret Theatre will open Boeing Boeing on July 19th. The Shakespearian comedy, A Midsummer Night's Dream continues on the Main Stage tonight through this weekend. This theater is having sold out performances, but if you are lucky, you can order tickets at 570-748-8083 or check www.millbrookplayhouse.org.