During the Noughties I lived in Sowerby Bridge and on the last Friday of the month would get the bus to a pub called Stubbing Wharf at Hebden Bridge with my boozing buddy for their Story Night. It was held in an upstairs room where a professional storyteller did their thing and, after a break to recharge our glasses, the floor would be thrown open to selected members of the audience. Obviously, like all forms of entertainment, the quality was variable, but most were really good, especially one about the Pendle Witch Trials. Tonight at Leeds Playhouse, my mind was transported back 15 or 20 years whilst watching Unhomely, as the first of the yarns had reference to witches and their persecution. The event is described as being Three Tales of Terror, and they most certainly were, the experience, however, differed wildly from my evenings in the Stubbing Wharf.
Not only were there three stories, but also three participants; Amy Helena, Duffy – no, not the Warwick Avenue singer – and Adam Z. Robinson, who also wrote the works, which were said to be from the fabled Book of Darkness and Light, a copy of which he carried throughout the evening. Mr Robinson began the proceedings with a warning that we were to witness scenes unsuitable for those of a delicate disposition and invited anyone who feared being affected by the gruesome, graphic content to leave now. He added a further caveat in that those who chose to stay would be required to commit their soul to ‘The Book’.
As I was feeling a little queazy, I took him up on his offer and went over the road to catch my next bus home. The rest of this article is just made up of random ramblings in order to pad it out!
OK, I didn’t have the inclination, or bravery, to leave the theatre, so I accepted the terms and conditions as laid down and prepared to be scared stiff, congratulating myself on my valour, and my wardrobe choice of brown trousers.
Adam Z. Robinson, Duffy and Amy Helena
Being held in a theatre, this story night had a proper set, comprising a large wooden house in need of major refurbishment and some outdoor furniture, and, as already stated, a cast of three rather than just a narrator. In the first and third stories, narrated by Adam Z. Robinson, Amy Helena and Duffy, who are both deaf, not only act out the various characters, but also incorporate BSL for those audience members in the same situation. In the second piece, an off-stage Andrea Heaton, a Playhouse regular, who I saw in the brilliant one-woman play Smile Club, provided the narration with Mr Robinson taking an acting role.
The first tale, The Reckoning of Patience Whittaker, opened with a thunderous noise which grabbed our attention and showed they meant business. It then lulled us into a false sense of security by telling the tale of two young newly-weds in the 18th Century, who find a plot of land in the woods close to a small Yorkshire village and decide to build their dream home there, even though they are from another area. The locals embrace their presence and all seems well. It is obviously going to take a turn for the worse, or there would have been a case to answer under the Trades Descriptions Act, and it does so when the local mayor takes a fancy to the dwelling and resolves to buy it at any price. The couple turn down his increasingly generous offers, confirming the fact that they are not from Yorkshire, leading him to find alternative ways to ‘persuade’ them to sell. His being an ex-Witchfinder gives clue as to what is to come.
Amy Helena
Shirley’s Monster deals with the decision of a writer of fiction to change horses and begin an autobiography. Her childhood is not a happy one, to say the least, not helped by being stalked by a monster. Everyone she comes across has it in for her until they are all assembled at the denouement.
To end the night’s entertainment there was ‘Tis Thy Presence, which is told by a housemaid at an old mansion using the trick of reading out the letters she writes home. This took a minute or two for the penny to drop as the housemaid’s correspondence is read out by Adam Z. Robinson, so seems a bit weird at first. Trust me, being weird in the company of these characters takes some doing. Even the corpse which begins the tale has not shed any blood even after having been stabbed several times. Needless to say, all is not as it appears.
I came away with mixed feelings over this production, not because it was in any way bad in itself, but I thought that the venue was a bit large to retain the feeling of threat. It is not by chance that when horror stories are told on tv they are usually related from an armchair by a fire in a small room with subdued lighting, adding an element of claustrophobia, something which was missing here, especially as there were sadly a fair number of empty seats.
Duffy
I thought that the use of actors to interpret the stories into BSL worked both ways. They must be a real boon to those in need of their services insofar as they could watch the action rather than keep one eye on the wings as is usually the case, but the flow was sometimes affected as there needed to be the odd pause for them to catch up with the spoken narrative. This is no reflection on the two people concerned; Amy Helena was brilliant at morphing from the deliriously innocent, happy young bride to the avenger in the first tale, through the possessed writer in the second, ending as a fairly incompetent housemaid in the third, giving her a chance to inject an element of humour.
Similarly, Duffy had all bases covered. He was perfectly cast in this trilogy. Being tall and well built with long dark hair, held back from his face he exuded menace but, again showed tenderness at the beginning of the first story and added humour into the second, when he played the strict maiden aunt, hoisting her bosom and flouncing across the stage. His transformation was made more believable by the long, dark coat he wore, which at one viewing looked like a sinister cloak, and the next, when buttoned, the aunt’s austere dress. Credit Emma Williams – Stage and Costume Designer.
All of the creative team did their jobs splendidly so please click on the link below to view the virtual programme, more details of the production, trailers and bookings.
https://www.leedsplayhouse.org.uk/event/unhomely-three-tales-of-terror/
So, if horror stories are your thing, I suggest that you take the chance to go see this production, which, although it ends its run at Leeds Playhouse on 23rd March, goes on to The Dukes, Lancaster 26th-30th March; Harrogate Theatre 10th-13th April and Drama Studio, University of Sheffield 19th-20th April.
Please be aware that the show lasts for about two and a half hours.
Should you find that you have been affected by any of the content then there is a list of contacts in the programme.
Sadly, there were no production images available so the photographs are from the rehearsals. Credit Gabi Dawkins. Feature image, Adam Z. Robinson, provided by Leeds Playhouse
For more details of what is on at Leeds Playhouse go to https://www.leedsplayhouse.org.uk/whats-on/
Tyke It To The Limit 