The Woman In Black Theatre Royal, Bath Until Saturday

WHAT better than a good old fashioned British ghost story to while away a wet and windy November evening? And what better ghost story is there than The Woman In Black?

The stage adaptation of Susan Hill’s much “loved” spine-chiller has been a regular fixture on the West End stage for nearly 30 years, and has terrified audiences around the country with an extensive tour.

It’s Bath’s turn this week, with the glorious Theatre Royal, surrounded by those ancient buildings looming out of the fog, being a suitably atmospheric venue.

The book, the play and versions for screens big and small make this traditional style tale seem very familiar, yet we were still thrilled and shocked by what took place on the stage (the poor young girl sitting in front of me didn’t actually see much of the play, as her face was buried in her mum’s shoulder for much of the performance).

There are no playful ghosts here, no sad old spectres forced to walk the Earth because of some wrong-doing in their lifetime. No, this is about a malevolent spirit, pure and simple, with death and disaster trailing in its wake.

The framework for the story is simple but clever – solicitor Arthur Kipps (David Acton) hires an actor (Matthew Spencer) to play out his experiences when he was sent to a bleak old house to study the documents and effects of a recently deceased widow.

The house is haunted, an evil force is at work, and Kipps nearly loses his mind, as well as his life.

While there is an impatient sense of “just get on with it” as Kipps and The Actor tread around the former’s manuscript, the set up builds gradually to draw the audience into the story, the tension ratcheted up to 11 as we await the full horror of what is to come.

While the actors do a splendid job, this is very much a team production. The lighting is almost a character in itself, subtle yet scary, establishing the atmosphere we crave for such a story. The set design may seem at first crude and minimalist, but holds a variety of surprises. And sound effects give us plenty of loud bangs and shrieks (the latter extended by the party of teenage schoolchildren in the upper circle – I wonder how they slept that night).

So with another audience’s nerves ripped to shreds, The Woman In Black retires for this night. But I reckon she’ll be back soon… STEPHEN WEBB