Christmas chills – ghost story show is a tradition to treasure

Nightmares at the Albany.

Nightmares: Three Ghost Stories, at the Albany Theatre, November 22 for one night only.

Review by Annette Kinsella.

It’s Christmastime, there’s no need to be afraid, sang Paul Young on the Band Aid charity single Do They Know It’s Christmas in 1984 (Or Kylie Minogue if you are of the 1989 vintage. Or One Direction if 2014 was your era). But actually, there is every reason to be afraid of Christmas. Because along with tinsel, turkey and mulled wine, one of the most enduring institutions of our time is The Christmas Ghost Story. Ever since Charles Dickens conjured the ghost of Jacob Marley and his sidekicks into being back in1843, people have enjoyed snuggling up by the fire, wind howling outside, only to scare themselves silly with tales of vengeful festive ghosts and spectral hounds hellbent on setting spines a-tingle.

Nightmares at the Albany Theatre fell squarely into this camp. Against the backdrop of flickering candlelight and a glowing fire, sole performer Adam Z Robinson showed off his craft as a master storyteller as he related three classic horror stories in the best Victorian tradition.

Taking the stage with only an ingeniously crafted chest, which boasted a raft of cleverly constructed doors and drawers to allow it to transform into a bed, a carriage and a table, he began with Algernon Blackwood’s The Kit Bag. I must admit the prospect of an everyday canvas rucksack becoming the focus of terror took some believing, until I remembered my son’s PE bag which stood untouched one long hot summer until September rolled around. What horrors that unleashed on the world when it was finally unzipped.

The eponymous kit bag in Blackwood’s story produced similar feelings of terror and revulsion, as Robinson spun the yarn of a possessed kitbag whose demonic persona did its best to destroy all it encountered. Coming to think of it, this bag has more and more in common with Edward’s festering games kit which certainly left its mark on all who witnessed it.

Next on the agenda was John Charrington's Wedding by E Nesbit, the tale of an ill-fated bridegroom who pledged to marry his fiancé dead or alive. Today this kind of avowal would likely be labelled as stalking, but once again the audience entered the willing suspension of disbelief with gusto, aided by Robinson who ably painted the picture of a shady country churchyard in summer – a world away from the wintry scenes of the previous story and yet just as believable.

Finally bringing up the rear was The Judge’s House, by Dracula author Bram Stoker.  Written in 1891, this account of a terrifying night in the house of a long-dead tyrannical judge is often credited as being the greatest ghost story of all time. And Robinson absolutely did it justice: his muted tones, against the soundscape of a crackling, snapping fire and the unearthly squeaking of rats in the wainscotting, created a palpable air of menace-fuelled tension and built up a sense of oppression to almost unbearable proportions until the horrifying climax.

A big shout out to the lighting technician here too, whose work bathed Robinson’s face in cold blue or ghastly green hues by turn, intensifying the eeriness of the environment and enhancing the feeling of dread.

Overall this was a great night of stories in the finest Yuletide tradition. Robinson’s production was assured, atmospheric - and showed that the Christmas ghost story is a tradition well worth treasuring.

See what else is coming up at The Albany Theatre:  https://www.albanytheatre.co.uk/