Review: GHOST STORIES OF ANTIQUARY, Longfield Hall

“Sing me a song of a lad that is gone . . .”

Ghost Stories of Antiquary, a “seated site-specific show with immersive elements” directed by Nicholas Benjamin and co-devised by Benjamin, Niamh Handley-Vaughan, Nadia Lamin and Miles Blanch, takes place in Longfield Hall, a Grade II building that survived the bombings of World War II, the very air raids that the characters in the show are taking shelter from.

The audience is bathed in a blue light, referencing the “See the Blue Light - it means Shelter at Night” posters from wartime. In fact, this poster and several others from the time period are posted around the space, along with music from the 1940s playing over the speakers. The actors come in and begin introducing themselves in character, asking where we are from and why we’ve chosen to shelter in this hall of all places. 

We are introduced to Parkin (Benjamin), Abigail (Handley-Vaughan), Harlan (Blanch) and Nancy (Lamin). The caretaker of the air raid space, Harlan, carries a 19th-century lantern with him, keeping it close as its blue flight flickers in the dark. Parkin, a proud professor at Cambridge, has lost his whistle, an object he appears to treasure dearly as he wanders the space. Abigail, whose husband was a professor at Cambridge as well, goes for a drink. And Nancy, the odd one out of the group, sits curled up on the stage, barefoot and frantically knitting a scarf that hangs past her feet. There is a strange tension between the four that only adds to the eeriness of being in the shelter.

Suddenly, the air raid sirens go off and we are plunged into darkness. In order to pass the time, Harlan suggests that they tell stories and, after some protestation, Abigail begins with a tale of her own. The stories in the show, and its very title, are inspired by some of the short stories of M. R. James, whose collection of works, Ghost Stories of an Antiquary, was published in 1904. These include “Oh, Whistle, and I’ll Come to You, My Lad,” “Lost Hearts,” “The Ashtree” and “The Mezzotint.” Each of the stories told by the characters also have references to James’s other stories as well as references to one another, making for a solid period of storytelling. There are several changes, but they are made in ways that make sense for the adaptation and still honour the original work. 

One of the highlights of the show is seeing how each of the four performers takes on a range of characters, becoming all of the people in the four stories told by the four in the shelter. I particularly loved some of the ways the actors “became” their different characters, including one scene in which as Abigail rips pages out of the book, the souls of the shelterers are seemingly replaced by the characters of the story in seconds. All of the performers do a fantastic job of portraying their characters, but Lamin is a standout as Nancy, going from a tortured soul to an amused torturer within seconds, switching between characters with ease. 

Without giving away the ending, it helps to continue the strange and “off” vibes that the audience has been feeling since the beginning without going too much into horror. As someone who tends not to be a fan of horror, I was grateful that the uses of jump scares were minimal and were actually used to enhance the story instead of simply existing for screams. 

Ghost Stories of Antiquary is a fascinating adaptation of the works of M. R. James, making for an engrossing night for everyone who enters the hall. The atmosphere truly makes one feel as though they have been transported into the 1940s, sitting in a shelter and listening to the stories along with the characters.

The show is a great step forward in site-specific theatre that could lead to some fantastic shows in the immersive horror genre in the future. It is truly powerful to be in a place that existed during the time of the story, especially one with such a focus on ghost stories. 

Ghost Stories of Antiquary runs until 27 April at Longfield Hall.

Photo Credits: Midnight Circle

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