Guildford Fringe Festival 2026
Ghost Light
Orange Works
Genre: Fringe Theatre, New Writing, Theatre
Venue: The Star Inn
Festival: Guildford Fringe Festival
Low Down
A writer in Dickensian London is researching ghost stories for a new book about haunted theatres. In order to experience apparitions first hand, he finds himself taking a room in a boarding house with numerous residents, only some of whom are still alive.
Review
Probably the easiest remit any lighting technician ever had; switch all the lights OFF on your way IN. We are plunged into near total darkness with the characters dressed head to toe in dark Victorian outfits, dimly lit by the lamps in their hands. It’s simple but very effective. Holding the lamps at shoulder height casts eerie shadows over the bearded faces and we are at once enjoying the Halloween-type spooky feel of the room. If the lighting technician got off easy, the sound guy was not so lucky. The various bumps and low level almost imperceptible hums and screeches, the rain falling on the window pane and the clips of children singing echoey nursery rhymes was absolutely excellent and heightened the sense of tension and unease. At this point, we are still only slightly uncomfortable, but the success of this play rests on transforming the spine-tingling spookiness of the start into a domestic horror story by the end.
The plot unfolds through a mixture of dialogue and narration by all characters. However the point at which we notice a perceptible shift in the tale is when Jonathon, who is lodging in the attic room, reads aloud a letter he has written to his lover Dan. Speaking of the loneliness and isolation of being a gay man in Victorian London, suddenly we realise this play is not just about things that go bump in the night. The testimony by Mia Sands confirms this is a commentary on the social injustice of the era, particularly towards women, children and homosexual men. It’s a horror show to be reminded that domestic violence of this nature could occur and women were hanged or sent to mental asylums if they spoke out about it because they had no autonomy or power within society. The only area where there are some questions about the script is the relationship between Jonathon and Victor. It is ridiculous to say it was unconvincing because this is a ghost story after all, but it seemed out of character and at odds with the message of the play.
Niggles aside, this is an excellent production which is well-staged and very engaging to watch. There were some well-considered details such as using the tinder box to relight the lamps and the actual appearance of the ghosts was cleverly done with its brevity. No hesitation whatsoever in recommending this show.
