Review: The Witching Hour, The Space

Imagine you’re accused of witchcraft, humiliated by your local community on live TV. Well, here at The Space, ReBels Young Company stages exactly that. The Witching Hour portrays a witch trial for audience entertainment in a twisted, toxic game show. Nominated by an anonymous source, Mary (Meg Sharland) must stand trial live on TV, accused of dabbling in the dark arts.

ReBels is an early career artists group from Barbican Theatre, Plymouth, here touring a newly devised production. Our host for the evening is played by the spectacular Toby McLellan, whose witty charisma and charm is perfect for the role. Dressed in a fabulous sparkling waistcoat, he guides us through the evening’s trials and tribulations with warped enjoyment. Mary is subjected to a series of witness testimonies and games that reveal a ludicrous yet expected inevitable fate.

Intertwined within the game show formula is a series of scenes set backstage, where backstage crew member Rose Williams touches up the makeup of the host whilst Mary protests being made a spectacle of. Her character feels over-exaggerated and, much to my dismay, the only role with a Northern accent is presented as ditzy and silly. She is however much better when playing Mary’s mother, a selfish, outspoken Southerner who steamrolls everyone she interacts with. The show is largely comedic, with funny and witty jokes but these don’t always land.

Jamie Simpson is extraordinary, taking on many hilarious roles as various witnesses to Mary’s ‘witchy’ behaviour. She embodies Mary’s ‘ex-boyfriend’, her neighbour and father with excellent comedic timing; from trying to hook up with an audience member to throwing holy water all over herself, she is extremely funny.

Audience participation is a large part of the show. Encouraged to play games and to applaud in line with a flashing neon sign, the audience are ultimately part of and complicit in the spectacle of the trial. It is interesting how this production poses the complicity of spectacle and suffering directly onto the audience, addressed by Mary’s finishing monologue where she attacks the audience, who turn an apathetic blind eye. The “insatiable hunger for drama” overrides her distress, yet the monologue doesn’t deliver the impactful punch it should.

The Witching Hour, unlike its name, is almost two hours long and this seems to be to its detriment. Pacing on occasion falls short and it would benefit from being more concise, with action unfolding more quickly; the first two witnesses are given as much time as the final plot twist guests. Allowing the ending space to unfold would feel more relevant and impactful to the show’s underlying messages.

This production is for the most part a fun, light-hearted barrel of laughs. It doesn’t quite achieve its fundamental messaging but with some fine-tuning and a larger audience to revel in its absurdity, The Witching Hour is a promising production.

Co-written by Connor Webster and Flo Limb

The Witching Hour is touring until Saturday 2 August.