Penobscot Theatre Company has lovingly brought the 19th century ghost story “The Turn of the Screw” to life. It leaves theatergoers wondering if these apparitions are as real as the three that haunt the Bangor Opera House.
The 90-minute play tells the story of a preacher’s daughter who leaves London to be a governess for two children at a remote country home. There she comes to believe that her predecessor and her sweetheart, who both died, are haunting the children and the house, even though she’s the only one they appear to.
Katie Peabody, who dazzled audiences earlier this year in the one-woman show “Matinicus” — a true tale about a girl who kept a lighthouse lamp burning during an epic storm — portrays the governess. Ben Layman, who has starred in dozens of shows with Penobscot Theatre and Ten Bucks Theatre Company, plays all the other characters in “The Turn of the Screw” and is listed in the program only as “The Man.” The two work beautifully together, carefully building the suspense.
Henry James’ novella, “The Turn of the Screw,” was published in 1898 in serial form in Collier’s Weekly. In 1995, playwright Jeffrey Hatcher developed the play with Portland Stage Company for its Little Festival of the Unexpected.
The show debuted there in January 1996. It premiered off Broadway three years later and has been produced hundreds of times since then in theaters around the country. “The Turn of the Screw” is similar to “The Woman in Black,” produced at the Opera House in the fall of 2013 and at Ten Bucks Theatre Company two years ago.
Both plays use two actors who narrate the story and play various roles in a plot that centers on a haunted house. Layman starred two years ago in “The Woman in Black” with Patrick “Patty” Morris in Ten Bucks’ former space at the Bangor Mall.
Cheryl Willis, co-artistic director at Acadia Repertory Theatre in Somesville on Mount Desert Island, who played the governess in that company’s 2009 production, directed this show at the Opera House. She skillfully builds the suspense and keeps the actors moving so that the pace is never static.
Peabody is excellent as the governess. She adeptly portrays the young woman’s eagerness for the job and excitement when arriving at the house. The story is told through her eyes and emotions, so she expertly shows how her suspicions about the ghosts grow until she is convinced they are appearing to her. It is a finely honed performance that succeeds on every level.
Layman plays the children’s uncle who hires the governess, the housekeeper at the home and the 10-year-old boy, although he is costumed as “The Man” throughout the play. He beautifully captures the uncle’s inability to care for his niece and nephew and the boy’s confusion over what is happening. But it is the befuddled and put-upon housekeeper who gives the show its loving heart.
Technically, this “The Turn of the Screw” is a barebones production with a staircase as the only set piece, designed by Jess Ploszaj, on an otherwise empty stage. The actors wear period costumes, designed by Kevin Jacob Koski, but do not use props. Remy Dickinson’s lighting design creates some creepy shadows but the actors’ faces are beautifully lit.
In a note to the audience in the program, playwright Hatcher said that he hoped the production “unnerves and unsettles you — in all the right ways. And I hope when you leave and try to make sense of what you’ve seen, you experience a satisfying level of uncertainty.”
Penobscot Theatre can proudly proclaim, “Mission accomplished.”
Penobscot Theatre Company’s production of “The Turn of the Screw” will be performed through Nov. 2 at the Bangor Opera House, 131 Main St. For more information, call 942-3333 or visit penobscottheatre.org.
