In Review: The Dreams in the Witch House by Jeff Woodward
Through the generosity of Brian Amidei, managing director and member of the Wildclaw Theatre Company, we got a chance to see Wildclaw's adaptation of H.P. Lovecraft's horror story, The Dreams in the Witch House, performed at the Anthenaeum Theater in Chicago.
We all know and love Lovecraft, one of the grand-daddies of horror fiction. During the 1920s and 1930s, Lovecraft spun yarns that raised the nape hairs, and a few eyebrows, in an era when story telling was reaching a pivotal moment in American literature; the birth of the modern horror story, which fused science, astrology, folklore and magic into what we recognize as some of the basic ingredients for every horror story written today.
Dreams in the Witch House, as adapted, takes a small detour from the original story, but is faithful to the premise. Walter Gilman, a mathematically gifted young man who is tortured by dreams of geometrical shapes, receives an acceptance letter to a school in Arkham, a town with a history of infant kidnappings and witchcraft. During his stay there, his nightmares become reality, as he finds himself playing a crucial role on May's Eve, the witches Sabbath . . .
When we first entered the studio, I was a bit surprised at the size of the venue. The studio had a one hundred person capacity, which meant that the audience had intimate contact with the theatre's members. There was no leaning forward to hear, or asking the person next to you what was just said. The acoustics and sound effects carried through the audience, washing over them over with the projected voices of the players. The special effects were well done, professional, and had a few people jump in their seats. I took particular notice of two women sitting in the row in front of me. In the opening scene, an infant is sacrificed by a priest, leading to the premise of power the witch has over Arkham. The two women openly gasped. In today's visually dependant, non-stop action movie world, Dreams in the Witch House did an excellent job at catching and holding the audience's attention.
Tom Whittington was exceptionally wonderful as the gifted, but frail, Walter Gilman. J David Moeller lifted the dread on a few occasions with his well-played role of Maurewisz, a fellow boarder at the Witch House, who was trying to protect Gilman from evil. Casey Cunningham was excellent as Lillith, her voice screamed the fear and pain as she was almost sacrificed. Ryan Patrick Dolan, as Officer Malone, the father of newborn twins, held the audience's hearts, as he was torn between his feelings against the sacrifice, and later as one of his children are kidnapped. Kate Malone, whose one of many roles included that of the wife of Officer Malone, shocked the crowd, as she slashed her husband's throat with a spatula ( this was one of the scenes when audible gasps where heard from the row in front of us). Sean Bolger, as the librarian, was true to his post of defending the dreaded Necronomicon, even until death. Brown Jenkins, the "rat with the human face", or witches familiar, had me actually believing he was just that. The hisses, and half human speech that came from Ron was credible to the point of weirdness. Michaela Petro, who played the witch Kelziah Mason, was wonderfully beautiful and hauntingly eerie. Her voice would have domineered a man into complete obedience with the utterance of a single command. Brian Amidei, who played multiple roles, held the audience's attention with his richly deep, baritone voice. His role as Dombrowski, the landlord of Witch House, is unforgettable (robe, tighty whiteys, and thick rimmed spectacles will live in my memory for a long time). As Father Iwanicki, Brian had me believing he was actually going to sacrifice Lillith( well, maybe just a little bit). Lastly, Chris Hainsworth, as Sheriff Raven, convinced us (just as he did Officer Malone), that the sacrifice had to be made, in order to save the town from future infanticide.
Credit must also be given to Charley Sherman, the director and story adapter. The variances he introduced did not deviate from the story in such a way that it became unrecognizable. He did what very few others have done; he took an H.P. Lovecraft story, and adapted it to the stage, in and of itself a feat of genius.
The Dreams in the Witchhouse played at the Athenaeum Theater in Chicago through Dec 21st, 2008. For more information on the Wildclaw Theatre Company, including upcoming shows, please visit www.wildclawtheatre.com