Frighthouse Presents: The Wheel Of Misfortune
★★★☆☆ Comically disturbing
Laughing Horse @ 32 Below (Venue 442): Tue 16 – Sun 28 Aug 2022
Review by Gwen M. Dolan
Part of the Laughing Horse Free Festival, The Wheel Of Misfortune is a horror-comedy which gives a bizarre account of various creepy tales, think Goosebumps tinged by The League of Gentlemen.
Sandy Jack’s Tales From the Frighthouse theatre company delivers dark comedy inspired by Horror B-movies and your own worst nightmares. Everything a twisted tale requires to scare: evil killer bunnies, an abandoned mansion and headless children.
The Wheel of Misfortune in rehearsal. Pic: TFTF
Here, Kyle Paton delivers a magnificent, over-theatrical performance as the deranged eccentric narrator. He spins the ‘wheel of misfortune’, a Ouija style board which leads to the next spine-chilling account, all accompanied by his menacing baddie-style laugh.
The show is a series of unexpected tales. Easter Bunny, Halley’s Comet, Bill and Game of Fear. Each one is written by Jack with the exception of Halley’s Comet, which is accredited to Andrea Kvalvaag.
A light hearted mockery of a 1950’s style detective, a hillbilly and a mad scientist (essential to any spoof horror) exhibits Antony Branco’s superior skills for accents and characterisation. He has a spark on stage and details each persona dynamically.
unsettles the audience
Eerie and ghoulish characters are played with grotesque physicality by Annie Cook. She delivers each with distorted expression, comedic timing and absurd vocality. Distinctly terrifying as a clown, Annie successfully unsettles the audience with a sinister presence. This carries a clear Clown Warning – coulrophobics should avoid the front.
Bill is a surreal Twilight Zone sketch, comparable to an episode from something like Twin Peaks. Sandy’s wry writing utilises homonyms for the title humorously, yet draws people into utter insanity.
The production is staged on a simple set but Oliver Giggins times the sound effects perfectly. The lighting is dark enough to be ominous without detracting from the performance and the pre-recorded visuals enhance the wacky world that is Frighthouse.
Entirely enjoyable, The Wheel of Misfortune showcases talented writing and performances from emerging local creatives. Imaginative, strange and comical, this is a piece of theatre you won’t forget – in your nightmares. Mwah Ha Ha Ha!
Running time: 50 minutes (no interval)
Laughing Horse @32 Below (Main Cellar), 2b West Nicolson Street EH8 9DD (Venue 442)
Tuesday 16 – Sunday 28 August 2022
Evenings (not Tue 23): 18.30
NB: Certified 18+
Details and tickets: Book here.
Company Social Media:
Facebook: @TalesfromtheFrighthouse
Instagram:@talesfromthefrighthouse
Twitter: @The_Frighthouse
ENDS
