An adaptation of a classic horror story that has you petrified and unable to rip your eyes away.
The Haunting of Hill House follows the classic 1959 gothic horror novel by the American author Shirley Jackson adapted for stage. It is a troubling tale of woe and evil as we bear witness to the tragic and terrifying supernatural events that occur at Hill House. The production showing at Liverpool’s Playhouse theatre draws the spooky season to a close with the stage play perfectly rounding off Halloween weekend and October as a whole.
Please proceed with caution when seeing this adaptation and don’t underestimate the ‘horror’ label. This production truly chills to the bones. This play was very successful in truly eliciting fear from the audience, beginning right at the first second with a very alarming jump scare as soon as it was curtains. An earth-shattering bang shook through the crowd, enrapturing them- ensuring if they were not awake, engaged and switched on, they certainly would be post-scare. It’s safe to say, the stage adaptation of the Haunting of Hill House is very scary!
There were many aspects of this Haunting of Hill House variant that make it such a successful work. One of these devices is the very realistic presentation of the haunting. Simple props and staging made for such an effective method in portraying an eerie atmosphere- giving more of a focus to the acting, allowing it to shine- and the staging is used as an accessory to support the plot and dialogue, not the sole conveyor of ghostly spirits and the supernatural. For example, in scenes, doors would fly open on their own accord, a children’s rocking horse would rock unpredictably and unaided in a sinister fashion and the lights on stage would flicker.
Additionally, it was very impressive how quickly the scene would shift on stage. The very quick transitions on stage facilitated a convincing haunting through scenes where the main character was being possessed and very quickly on a dark stage moving from spot to spot, putting on a very believable act of possession as she writhed on different corners of the stage. Another applaudable quick transition of the scene was when the stage within seconds went dark and shifted from normal to being covered in blood by the spirits. The possession scene, amongst many, was extremely visceral, the actress dramatically contorting and convulsing, really adding to the frightfulness as well as being interesting to watch. It was very captivating to witness these scene transitions as they were assisted through some very interesting graphic projections onto the black stage adding a sense of mystery and suspense.
Towards the end, a very unexpected plot twist is revealed that frames the whole story and pieces together pieces of the puzzle of the plot. This plot twist fools the audience and leaves everyone shocked, horrified and reeling from the quick and dramatic end to the tale, almost instantaneously having lights come on and the performance finish, hardly giving the audience a moment to process the new information. This shock factor is integral to the effectiveness, interest and success of this Haunting of Hill House adaptation.
The Haunting of Hill House plays at the Liverpool Playhouse until the 7th of November, tickets are on sale here.