…only two actors play all the parts in The Woman in Black: at Keegan, Robert Leembruggen is an older Mr. Kips and Matthew Keenan is the actor Mr. Kips hires to help him muster the courage to tell the ghost tale that has haunted him for too long. But it’s not as easy as it looks or sounds. Once we get into the old tale, Keenan as the actor plays the role of a young Mr. Kips journeying to Crythin Gifford while Leembruggen then assumes the roles of the people he meets along the way.
Once we get into the heart of the story — and especially once we’re firmly in Mrs. Drabnow’s spooky home on the hill — everything picks up. By the time the show’s over, Keegan and directors Colin Smith and Mark A. Rhea have given theatergoers a real ride; a sophisticated, theatrical equivalent of a haunted house adventure. You just might scream – and certainly will gasp – at least once as a result of a few tricks played by Keegan’s well-coordinated team, most notably Michael Innocenti on lights and Tony Angelini on sound.
If you haven’t come around the way a skeptical Mr. Kips did and still don’t believe in ghosts at play’s end, well, don’t blame Keegan. But do look across the street as you exit. Boo!
