Audiences are first greeted by the Victorian-inspired set, designed by the director [Josh Sticklin] and dressed by Cindy Landrum Jacobs. It immediately set the atmosphere for the show and was evocative of Andrew Wyeth’s painting The Witching Hour, and Alejandro Amenábar’s visual masterpiece The Others. The majority of the stage was a circular revolving turntable, which spun throughout the show. It featured a fixed doorframe and door, a lamp, a chandelier, and other mutable pieces and props. It was delightful to see the period props serve different purposes, given different lives by the actors and imagination. A piece of luggage may be a seat, a chest, or a tombstone in a 30-minute span, working equally effectively for all purposes. Depending on which direction the stage was spun, different buildings were created— churches, offices, trains. It was all handled very simply and creatively by director Josh Sticklin, and played seamlessly and believably by the actors.
A further level of verisimilitude is added through lighting and sound design, by Sage Green and Brandon Cook, respectively. The sonic world of the show (or the “recorded sounds”) filled in the gaps where needed. It became people, vehicles, weather, and even a dog named Spider that, combined with believable acting and pantomiming, felt like a third character. The lighting too is used, though is allowed to slip into unreality, accentuating mood and tone rather than looking “real.” Costumes were used to effect, providing, especially for Leembruggen, to put on proverbial and literal hats as he switched characters. With his hats and accessories, he too changed his voice and accents. Not in any exaggerated way, but in a real, down-to-earth way. It was rather enjoyable.
The show invites the audience (quite literally) to step into the world of imagination. To suspend their disbelief and enjoy a ghost story within a play, within a play. It is evocative of the ancient human tradition of gathering in a dark room at night and whispering scary stories to each other. The stylish technical aspects of the show in tandem with the wonderful world Leembruggen and Mutterperl paint with their performances allow the audience to slip into that spooky room and hear a ghastly tale. The two performers are a treat to watch, they play the scenes as needed, and clearly understand each other and the text on an alchemical level.
