Culturally Flabby

Recently, I realised that with so much revision, we had (justifiably) gotten a bit culturally flabby, so we scoured the theatre schedules, using only the strictest criteria – the tickets weren’t to cost too much.

We went to see “The Woman in Black” at the Fortune Theatre, London.  Carenza’s boyfriend, Sasoon, had been before and thoughtfully warned us that it was terrifying. 

Possibly he didn’t know that, unlike Perran who is a buff of scary films, I am not good with terror.

We were in cramped seats in the upper circle, at such a steep pitch that if I had leapt out of my skin, I would also have leapt out of the gallery and landed on the people below.  Imagine the very real screams when they realised that the huge mass descending swiftly from above wasn’t just another special effect.

So I held tight to Nigel and Perran’s hands, glancing nervously behind me every so often.  It was thrilling how much suspense the three players managed to build up over a piece that was largely an MR James-style narrative, using only their own acting skills, a bare set  and very low-tech special effects.

(And presumably also how much profit, for exactly the same reasons.)

Luckily, I didn’t disgrace myself.  Sasoon, who came too, reckoned the effects are less scary up in The Gods.  All I can say is, hooray for the cheap seats!