The Woman In Black (2017)

By Steven Mallatratt
Based on the novel by Susan Hill
Directed by Elly Green

March 24th – April 23rd
Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays 7:30pm
Sunday matinees at 3pm

WildClaw Theatre begins their 2017 season by bringing the award-winning stage play based on Susan Hill’s classic 1983 novel to Chicago. A solicitor hires an actor to tutor him in recounting to family and friends a story that has long troubled him. It concerns events that transpired when he attended the funeral of an elderly recluse twenty years ago. There he caught sight of a woman in black, the mere mention of whom terrifies the locals, for she is a specter who haunts the neighborhood. Together, the two men recreate the events of that dark and stormy night.

Cast:

Robert Koon – The Actor
Priyank Thakkar – Mr. Kipps
Nic Bell – Understudy
Mark Lancaster – Understudy

Production Team:

Elly Green – Director
Norine McGrath* – Assistant Director/Makeup Artist
Ryan Kenney – Stage Manager
MJ Dougherty – Assistant Stage Manager
John Wilson** – Scenic Designer/Technical Director
Emma Deane – Lighting Design
Alec Long – Props Design
Sarah D. Espinoza* – Sound Design
Rachel M. Sypniewski – Costume Design
Mark Penzien – Movement Consultant
Moira Begale* – Production Manager
Shandee Vaughan – Production Manager
Krista D’Agostino* – Dramaturg
Kathy Logelin – Dialect Coach

*WildClaw Theatre company member
**WildClaw Theatre artistic associate

Press:

“This production is a horror fan’s dream! … 10/10!” – Geek N Out

“Thakkar and Koon continuously engage the audience with an in-the-moment warmth that evokes empathy, and with it, a deeper and more thrilling experience of their terror.” – PerformInk Chicago

“I clutched my companion’s hand in fright more than once.” – EDGE Media Network

“Despite the creative minimalism of the play-within-a-play conceit, the production values are robust. There are enough jump scares to satisfy any horror aficionado … The transitions between framing device and the frightful tale of Eel Marsh House are clear and flow well, aided by Emma Deane’s lighting design. … Sarah D. Espinoza produces an outstanding soundscape that lives up to their acclaim, and each creak and screech is precisely deployed.” – TheaterMania

“There were a lot a really chilling moments. I saw the movie and I thought it was scary, but this was scarier because everything was so up-close. Whenever anything terrifying happened it felt like it could reach out and get you.” – Ada Grey Reviews for You

“Who knew a simple scrim could be put to such creepy effect?” – Chicago Reader

Special Thanks:

Kate Healy, Marybeth Bush, John Taflan, Dave and Co., ComedySportz Chicago, Norine’s Grandmother, Eve Breneman, Tiffany Keane Schaefer, Vagabond School of the Arts, The Den Theatre, Norine’s Mother, A Red Orchid Theatre, Dave Fink, Todd Wojick