Fans of horror films, you have to see this. Swedish director and movie obsessive Jakop Ahlbom has made a loving homage to the genre that’s clever, thoroughly entertaining and has some genuine jump-out-of-your-seat moments.
Ahlbom’s elaborate staging uses illusion, mime, movement and music (no words), sharp editing and a blood-curdling soundtrack to push buttons and reverently poke fun at films old and new, from The Exorcist to Evil Dead 2. Direct references elicit delighted shrieks from film buffs in the audience, but even those who aren’t aficionados will recognise the many tropes packed into this slick show — the stormy night, the deserted house, the creepy, ghostly girl with long dark hair and soul-stealing eyes.
A young woman turns up at her childhood home where she is haunted by the spectres of her sadistic family. What starts with spooky shadows on the wall escalates into a full-on bloodbath and Ahlbom nails the blend of fear and farce so common in the genre, with bad zombie fighting and lashings of fake blood mixed in with unnerving drama underlined by a shaky sense of reality.
This UK premiere is only playing for two nights as part of the London International Mime Festival, but it’s a brilliantly conceived and performed piece that deserves to be widely seen.
January 26, Peacock Theatre (020 7863 8222, peacocktheatre.com)
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