The Woman in Black at The Grand Theatre, Blackpool

I have read the book, seen the film and felt compelled to watch the theatre adaption of The Woman in Black at The Grand Theatre, Blackpool. The stage production is celebrating 25 years in the West End and is described as the “most terrifying live theatre experience in the world” - The apprehension built before we had even arrived at the theatre!

The performance begins with unexpected humour with little indication of the chilling darkness that followed – there is an assumption and initial puzzlement that there is something wrong with the sound I found myself learning forward this was only the start of being physically drawn into the story. In true terms, the story was a masterpiece of acting, eerie lighting and evocative sound. With the stage set with a minimum of props, an effective use of imagery and suggestion take the audience on a terrifying journey.  

To witness the whole audience react to the build-up of tension and fear provides a very different and memorable experience of theatre. One teenage audience member covered her ears, clenching her head in her hands which summed up the increased, hold your breath tension increasing the need to know what happened.

I would highly recommend seeing this whilst it’s staged in Blackpool, I would consider it great entertainment for my teenagers, for my younger teen the matinee performance would give her a longer recovery time in daylight or a perfect night out for adults.  

Tickets were received for review on Monday 30th March 2015.