THE FORSYTHE SISTERS | STAGE REVIEW
Fri 6 Feb, Norwegian Church, Cardiff Bay
Though it’s an iconic part of Cardiff Bay the Norwegian Church can feel oddly isolated from lively hubbub of Mermaid Quay, especially on a rugby night when the bars are full of drink filled sports fans.
On this night in particular it was the first night of the Six Nations and Wales were taking on England, so there were plenty of people about. But as I edged nearer to the church I very quickly moved from the lights and noise of the centre of the quay to its dark and quiet corner: the perfect place for a séance.
Okay it wasn’t a real séance (I’m a strong believer that ghosts aren’t real and that there isn’t really such thing as a ‘real’ séance, but saying that I will avoid a ouija board like the plague – I’ve seen Paranormal Activity and I’m not taking any chances) it was a theatrical one created by the combined minds of Gagglebabble and Theatr Iolo.
Shown into the church (which is much more welcoming inside then the exterior, on a cold dark night, would lead you to believe) I joined the rest of the audience for a cup of tea in the cafe. Soon enough we were shown into the churches main hall by the friendly and quirky Diana (played by Catrin Aaron) – our host for the evening and apparently an employee of the church.
Once we had taken our seats and had Diana welcomed us warmly and introduced the women we had come to see: the Forsythe sisters.
Years ago these two sisters, Morven (Hannah McPake) and Maggie (Lucy Rivers), were orphaned after a tragic fire took the lives of their parents and left Maggie blind. The fire took Maggie’s sense of sight, but gave her another. Yes, just like the little boy from The Sixth Sense, she can ‘see dead people’.
With beautiful musical accompaniment (Morven plays the cello as Maggie picks up both the violin and guitar) the séance begins. As we hear the tragic tales of local spirits, and the audience appear to share their own paranormal experiences, things start to go awry. Mysterious strangers turn up, Maggie seems to be losing her grip on reality and things start to go bump in the night.
The music in this ‘ghostly musical chiller’ (described as such in it’s programme) was fantastic. There was some haunting songs from the sisters and brilliant blues tunes that I ended up humming to myself on the way home, if Gagglebabble decide to sell the soundtrack to the show I’ll be first in line to buy it!
This was coupled with some great performances; Aaron’s character Diana was spot on as the funny, scatty ‘community organiser’ – she’s the type of person that we all know in one form or another and her interactions with the audience were hilarious.
Special musical guest Dan Lambert (known best as the frontman of Johnny Cage And The Voodoogroove) was a fantastic choice as his gravelly blues infused voice – one part scary and two parts seductive – was perfect for his character.
The show wasn’t flawless, however, as the immersive aspect of the show very occasionally clashed with the more flamboyant musical side – particularly in the scenes when we, as an audience, are meant to be eves dropping on conversations, with the characters seemingly unaware. These scenes could benefit from have a more natural feel, breaking away from the performative feel seen in the ‘séance show’.
This, however, is a very minor issue in an overall very enjoyable show which not only has some highly enjoyable characters and delicious music but a brilliant revelation at the end.
words HEATHER ARNOLD
{The Forsythe Sisters}, The Norwegian Church, Cardiff Bay, Sat 4-Sat 14 Feb. Tickets £10-£12. Info: www.gagglebabble.co.uk
