Ghost Stories
Written by Jessica Green
After our interview with Jeremy Dyson and Andy Nyman last month I was well and truly sucked into the buzz of Ghost Stories. With only an eerie 20 second trailer posted on YouTube and an interview on Radio 4’s Front Row on which the writers encouraged audiences to see an earlier show to avoid hearing too much about it, the content of the show has been a well kept secret. When I walked into a Playhouse which had been transformed into a creepy CSI-esque crime scene, the feeling of walking into the unknown made the experience of the show even more terrifying.            I think it is appropriate to call it a show, with an impressive mobile set and props that fly out from all directions without warning. The plot, although unexpected, isn’t incredible but dialogue and character more than make for this. I also think that it is important to respect a team who are prepared to take the risk of putting on a horror play in the theatre. With audiences so desensitised to horror by big budget Hollywood films it was never going to be easy to scare people. On the other hand, horror films allow audiences to know that they are on the safe side of the screen. Although some parts of Ghost Stories’ plot are questionable, the fear you feel is undoubtedly real and as an audience, you’re in the same darkened room, experiencing exactly what the characters are. And this is (possibly) far more terrifying than any horror film.            The two writers said that as long as they had people screaming in the audience and not sleeping after seeing it, then they would feel it had been a success. I more than fulfilled both of these categories.