The Ghost Train (Revised)

A deserted railway station in the middle of the Cornish countryside on a cold winter’s night; a group of disgruntled passengers forced to take shelter despite the urging of the station master to leave because of the rumour of haunting and vengeful ghosts: lovely ingredients for a play, even on a summer’s evening. We could feel the cold from the passengers on the stage as the steam from the train came through under door, and the moving lights at the back through the windows of the approaching train. The set was stunning: it did indeed look really old, yellowing walls, the added touch of leaks from an unknown substance in two places which was such a lovely detail. The little benches going round the corners at the front were especially lovely, giving so much space to the actors. Curling posters were on the walls from a gone time, gas lit lamps that brightened when the gas lever at the bottom was pulled. The actors were all lit beautifully, and the train lights behind the windows accompanied by the tell-tale puff of a train sound was lovely. The dark windows behind the lit room were very eerie, especially when a whitened face appeared there and made us jump. 

This production had more jump scares than most and it was better for it, as well as the creeping dread. It did however have the direction touch of musical theatre with the monologues, as they were performed out to the audience rather than the other actors, otherwise the space was used really well and the teamwork flowed from the stage. They all clearly enjoyed being part of this team and creating the space for the story to be told, with each of them being so generous. It’s a deceptively tricky play to stage as the behaviours of the people particularly regards to women are so opposite to where we are today: this was written in the time where fictional women were helpless and turned to their man to protect / comfort / save them. The only way to do the play is with natural acting which all of this was, yet slightly stylised, which it also was, otherwise the dynamics in the couples in some places can come across as comedic. Director Alison Shapley navigated this well. It’s very difficult to put on something so old fashioned, even the revised edition, where some of the people on the stage are unrecognisable to modern eyes. 

All the actors did really well in their roles. Paul Milwright made a lovely bumbling Saul Hodgkin who was not as bumbling as he first appeared: his character was pitched just right. We knew immediately who Nicki Barnett’s Elsie Winthrop was, just by the way she held out her coat for her husband to hang up, and she continued with lovely eyerolls and attitude as a woman who was doing her best to be independent but actually still loved and doted on her husband underneath it all. Keiran Gladman made a great Charles Murdock: this part really suited him, he had a super attitude and English stiff upper lip demeanour. Antony Barden shone as Teddie Deakin, the man they all loved to hate yet hiding his identity until the right moment. The way he played both sides of his character made perfect sense and was totally congruent, which isn’t always the case with this character in other productions: this was really very well done. Niki O’Neill was a fabulous Julia Price as both the eccentric, unstable woman she pretended to be and the brains behind the secret when it was revealed. Totally believable as both. All the actors did really well and all helped to tell the story bringing out their characters. 

All costumes were just right: Teddie Deakin’s outfit was hilarious, obviously going with his undercover persona. Julia Price’s evening dress was absolutely stunning and it was a joy to see her in it, which overrode the question of why an escaped mental patient (as she was pretending to be at the start) was dressed that way. All the others were thankfully dressed for travel in keeping with the storyline, although it was unclear why they were taking their coats off if they were cold, especially as they were keeping their hats on. It was however lovely to see the costumes underneath. It’s a shame when prompts have to be relied on as it takes the audience out of the moment of the story: actors did well to pick it up when it happened. The added ending when all the characters left the stage was brilliant: great idea, suitably wrongfooting the audience and leaving us with shivers. Congratulations to everyone involved in this charming production. 

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