After seeing some, so called, ‘thrillers’ at Leeds Grand Theatre which have descended into farce, I was sceptical about this, but, as it has had successful runs at various theatres throughout the world, both in residence and on tour, I thought I would give it a shot. On balance I am pleased that I did, because it was a well constructed piece with a great twist at the end, which tied all the strands together. My only gripe was the number of special effects designed to shock the audience but had little or nothing to do with the story. I thought that the narrative worked very well on its own merits without the blackouts and bangs. Because of the nature of the play I obviously can’t give too much away insofar as the plot is concerned, actually the main focus was on relationships and attitudes rather than being a narrative, so just a general outline it is then.
This is a four-hander concerning two couples who have gathered for a housewarming of the new gaff being renovated by Sam, played by James Bye, and Jenny, Shvorne Marks; the two guests are Lauren, Natalie Casey, an American psychiatrist, who was at university with the hosts, and her new man, Ben, Grant Kilburn, a builder with whom she hooked up whilst he was working on her place. All excelled.
Jenny was uneasy about the new house as she had had some odd experiences whilst Sam was working away on Sark, one of the smaller, more remote, Channel Islands where there is no light pollution, ideal for his scientific occupation relating to the study of stars. It also means that it is almost totally off-grid, so she couldn’t contact Sam to tell him of her fears.
The incidents in question were that, at 2:22 each morning, Jenny had heard their baby crying and footsteps circling her cot. She still heard them whilst in the room even though she saw no one. This was revealed to the gathered guests, leading to a discussion about the existence, or otherwise, of ghosts. Ben was convinced that they were a ‘thing’ as he had a supernatural experience when a boy, whereas James, being a scientist, was adamant that there was a logical reason that they were a figment of people’s imagination. Lauren, was more interested in the spirits which came in a bottle, so much so that the two men had to go to the local off licence to stock up on booze after she had almost single-handedly, seen off all the wine. As the debate raged, Jenny insisted that they all stay until 2:22 to witness what she saw, thus causing more revelations and friction between the characters.
I will leave it there so as not to include any spoilers, save to say that the denouement made the audience question everything we had seen throughout the play.
There was quite a lot of comedy amongst the suspense, which added to the overall effect. Had it been sombre all the way through, the bonhomie of an informal old friends’ get together would have been missing, whereas here the natural highlighted the supernatural very well.
The set, by Anna Fleischle, was static, comprised the open plan living, dining and kitchen space of the partly renovated house, being converted from the old fashioned style of the elderly lady who was the previous owner, to the modern ‘young professional’ pad complete with huge glass sliding doors to the rear. The dominant feature, however, was a digital wall clock displaying the time – obviously – thus providing the countdown to 2:22. The Lighting Designer, Lucy Carter, and Sound Designer, Ian Dickinson for Autograph, combined on a number of occasions to provide startling effects, two of which left us in no doubt as to when the interval began – and when it ended.
2:22 A Ghost Story, written by Danny Robbins and directed by Matthew Dunster and Gabriel Vega Weissman, runs at Leeds Grand Theatre until Saturday, 16th May, after which it continues its tour. To book, please go to https://leedsheritagetheatres.com/whats-on/222-2026/
For details of the show, other tour dates and to see a trailer please go to https://222aghoststory.com/
For all productions at Leeds Heritage Theatres click on https://leedsheritagetheatres.com/whats-on/?genre=live
Photographs by Helen Murray
Tyke It To The Limit 