The Mystery of Irma Vep

GOTHIC COMEDY

For those of us whose childhood was steeped in black and white horror films of the 1940s and 50s, the Lyceum’s latest production looks a treat. Charles Ludlam’s camp epic presents a pastiche of every nostalgic device of the genre, borrowing freely from Hitchcock’s version of Rebecca, before carousing through every other gothic romp from the period.

‘Anyone who remembers those Universal logos coming up before the movie will recognise this,’ says actor Steven McNicoll. ‘It’s got the Wolf Man, the Mummy, the man with the wooden leg and even Mrs Danvers from Rebecca.’ Yet the play is not simple pastiche, as the other performer in this two hander, Andy Gray adds. ‘The point about it is not just the old recognisable figures – we’ve got a story of our own to tell, and I think the audience will be engaged by that.’

Director Ian Grieve reckons that the bewildering number of costume changes the piece requires as it places one character atop another is part of the fun, but not all of it. ‘After a while the audience won’t notice them, because the story actually does become very important,’ he says. This involves an Egyptologist, whose new wife finds an increasingly turbulent story behind the demise of her husband’s late first wife. Sound familiar? Just enjoy!

Royal Lyceum Theatre, Edinburgh, Fri 20 Feb–Sat 14 Mar

More: Theatre, Previews (Theatre), GOTHIC COMEDY, The Mystery of Irma Vep

Comments

No comments yet – be the first.

To post a comment you'll first need to sign in: Forgotten your password?

Sign in

Email
Password
Remember

Not registered? Sign up – it only takes a minute.

RSS feed of these comments