Showing @ Cameo until 11 Aug, 22:30
Ghostly apparitions and spooky fairground thrills form the basis of Sample Theatre’s Carnival of Souls. Based on Herk Harvey’s 1962 cult horror film, this theatrical version presents the themes of trauma, fear and alienation in an altogether spookier way.
Comprised of both live action and scenes from the original film, Carnival of Souls follows the socially awkward Mary (Hayley Mallinson), the sole survivor of a recent car accident, as she attempts to create a new life for herself in another town. But her brush with death has unseen consequences, as she is soon haunted by a series of frightening visions that eventually lead her to an abandoned carnival that holds a deadly secret.
Directed by Madeleine Hughes, this production is a brave and unique homage to the original film that’s said to have inspired George A Romero’s Night of the Living Dead. Performed entirely in Cameo 1, the decaying opulence of the cinema was well matched with the production’s antique feel and old-fashioned look. But while the unconventional setting of the play undoubtedly made Carnival of Souls stand out, the size of Cameo 1 often made the production look tiny in such a vast space, with the chairs in the auditorium serving as a barrier, not allowing the two main actors to get close to the audience. While the effort was made to utilise this space, with the inclusion of two dancers, who would crawl and slither through the seating, the screen is just unsuited to a theatrical piece. Devised by the cast, the play retains most of the film’s eerie atmosphere throughout with the use of movement, video projection and sound, but it’s the inclusion of these more modern techniques, while well executed, that removed the dark ambiguity of the story as they overpowered a simply creepy ghost story.
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