Woman in Black: It Aint Sci-Fi

I spent an enjoyable evening with the folks at Blak Yak last night watching the first night of The Woman In Black at the Don Russell Performing Arts Centre.It's classic thriller material, perhaps even worthy of a capital "C" Classic as it really is beautifully crafted play. A man approaches an actor for lessons and assistance in presenting a "performance" of a manuscript he has written. The manuscript describes a ghostly experience the man had several years before. They enact the manuscript playing the various roles with frightening consequences. I'd admit that some portion of my enjoyment of this production perhaps came from my savouring a script that really was superb.This was a technically demanding production for actors and crew. Many lighting and set changes, copious sound effects and at least one of the actors playing about half a dozen different roles. It's to the credit of all concerned that the performance ran as smoothly as it did, with only a few very slight pauses in the action. Doubtless these will disappear during the course of the run as the cues tighten.In a two hander (?) it's perhaps unfair to single out any performer, but Fred Lawson's performance was very accomplished and he was well supported by Nick Donald. First time director Neil MacDonald is to be congratulated on a production that would have put some, far more experienced directors to shame.CheersGrant