A Ghost Amongst the Living ⭐️⭐️

"An unknown scholar takes the stage to honour Poe's darkest masterpieces... but lines blur, and stories twist into a dangerous confession. Step closer, if you dare..."

There is something wonderfully spooky about A Ghost Amongst the Living. With puppetry, atmospheric lighting, eerie sound and a story inspired by Edgar Allan Poe, there are plenty of ingredients here for an effective gothic theatrical experience. Unfortunately, the production sometimes becomes so caught up in trying to create its own theatrical language that it loses sight of making that language easy for the audience to follow.

The direction is interesting, although there are points where it feels as though the staging is being shaped too heavily around the three-sided seating arrangement. Rather than feeling like a natural part of the performance, some of the positioning occasionally comes across as though the performers are deliberately moving around to make sure every side of the audience gets a look. In a production this atmospheric, those moments can pull you out of the world slightly.

The puppetry and special effects are used well, however, there are moments where the production creates exactly the kind of eerie theatrical atmosphere it is aiming for, and these technical choices demonstrate just how effective simplicity can be when everything comes together.

The set design is lovely, centred around a main podium and a series of arches which cleverly transform into different locations. Suitcases and lanterns are used to help establish the various environments, and there is a pleasing theatricality to watching such a relatively small collection of objects become something much larger.

The costume design is good, with the waistcoat featuring the ripped book page design being a particular highlight. It is a lovely visual detail that fits the literary and gothic aesthetic of the production. The all-black costume also looks effective, although I wanted more explanation for its purpose within the world of the story.

The lighting design is nicely executed and does a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to creating the spooky atmosphere. I particularly enjoyed the use of the lanterns, especially when smoke emerged from one of them. There were a couple of occasions where these effects appeared and felt slightly out of place, but when the elements aligned, the atmosphere was genuinely eerie.

The sound design is one of the stronger technical aspects of the production. The eerie music is atmospheric without completely drowning out the performers, allowing the audience to remain immersed whilst still being able to hear what is being said. It strikes a good balance between creating mood and supporting the storytelling.

The book is where things become considerably more complicated. The central idea is interesting, particularly the decision to move between directly addressing the audience and entering into scenes. However, these shifts aren't always clearly established, which can make the narrative increasingly difficult to follow.

At the beginning, the central character tells us that he shouldn't be doing this alone, only for a woman to then appear as part of the performance without the reason for her presence being properly explained. These sorts of unexplained transitions happen throughout the piece, and they gradually make the storytelling feel quite messy. The strongest moments are actually when the production leans directly into Edgar Allan Poe's original words. There is something powerful about hearing the language delivered faithfully, and these sections provide a much clearer sense of what the production is trying to achieve. I wished there were more moments where the show trusted the source material rather than trying to layer quite so many additional ideas over it.

The performances are interesting, although I often found myself struggling to understand exactly what the characters were feeling or intending. The emotional motivations aren't always communicated clearly, which makes some of the more dramatic moments difficult to connect with. There is also a moment where the female character sings, but without enough context to understand why she is doing so. Rather than feeling like a natural extension of the story, it comes across as another theatrical idea appearing without enough explanation. There is clearly a lot of creativity on display, but sometimes the production's individual ideas don't quite speak to one another.

A Ghost Amongst the Living has some genuinely impressive theatrical ingredients. The puppetry, set, lighting and sound demonstrate a strong visual and atmospheric imagination, and there are moments where the production creates a wonderfully eerie gothic world. However, the storytelling is ultimately too confusing for the atmosphere to carry it fully. The frequent shifts in narrative style, unclear character motivations and moments that feel disconnected from the central story make it difficult to become fully invested. There is certainly something intriguing at the heart of the production, and the technical creativity deserves recognition. But for me, the ghost wasn't quite the only thing that felt lost in this particular story.

A Ghost Amongst the Living plays at Pleasance Queen Dome. For more information and to book tickets, visit: https://www.pleasance.co.uk/event/ghost-among-living