Everything Theatre Reviews, interviews and news for theatre lovers, London and beyond
Strong staging and a game cast make for an entertaining evening on the wild moors.Summary
Rating
Good
Sir Henry Baskerville (an excellent Mark Beauchamp) returns from abroad to claim his family heritage after the suspicious death of his uncle. He has inherited Baskerville Hall, but has he also inherited the family curse? Set against the eerie backdrop of the moors, we follow Sherlock Holmes (Tom Thornhill) and Dr. Watson (SP Howarth, also excellent) as they investigate the legend of a supernatural hound haunting the Baskerville family.
Paul Winterford plays multiple roles with impressive accent work, Emma Riches too plays several roles; first a giddy delight in the small role of Cartwright, Holmes’ messenger, and later in the more serious role of Beryl Stapleton, a neighbour of Baskerville Hall.
Director Andrew Hobbs makes superb use of the small space, with the stage and theatre doors making for entrances and exits, and cast members hiding by the wall and even dodging boots thrown from offstage. Watson’s narration is particularly effective, supported by lighting design from Matthew Karmios, which uses changes in lighting to prompt Watson to step forward and fill in details of transition to the next scene.
The evening is accompanied by music composed and performed by Alistair Smith (who also plays a couple of very minor characters) and this adds to the atmosphere throughout. In such a small space, I had wondered how they would manage the hound itself, and the answer is: simply and very well. A combination of sound and light, with a freeze and time slowdown from the cast is tremendously effective, the red light immediately making us think of the demonic eyes of hellhound. A fog machine fills in for the moors, again simple but successful. The costumes are all effective, Watson and Sir Henry in dapper suits, and an inspired update to keep the use of Holmes’ famous pipe – a pipe vape!
Smart choices and well thought out staging complements a cast who are clearly committed. There is a sense of camaraderie between them and an atmosphere of fun at all times. A moment where a corpse leaves the stage but bumps into audience members provides warm amusement for both audience and cast, and a light scene of an audience member becoming a Baskerville portrait is a treat for all. With two hour-long halves, Baskervilles runs a little bit too long and trimming down one or two subplots, to up the pace just a little, would benefit the show while still doing justice to Arthur Conan Doyle’s work.
I recently moved quite close to the Bridge House Theatre and several friends came with me to see this. Afterwards, the immediate and unanimous response was that this was a lot of fun. The British Touring Shakespeare team have captured the intrigue and the mystery you would expect from a Sherlock Holmes story and made for a most entertaining evening – the game is very much afoot!
Directed by Andrew Hobbs
Written by Arthur Conan Doyle
Adapted by Andrew and David Hobbs
Lighting Design by Matthew Karmios
Sound Design, original music composed and performed by Alistair Smith
The Hound has finished its run at Bridge House Theatre. It returns as a part of British Touring Shakespeare Summer Open Air Season 2023, further details can be found here.
