Live and in person at Theatre Orangeville, in Orangeville, Ont. Playing until April 2, 2023.
Written by Kristen Da Silva
Directed by David Nairn
Set by Beckie Morris
Costumes by Alex Amini
Lighting by Rebecca Picherack
Cast: Kristen Da Silva
Alex Furber
Oliver Georgiou
Mary Pitt
A haunted-house-don’t-trust-anybody thriller. The seats at Theatre Orangeville are sturdy and you can nicely sit on the edge of your seat for the whole show.
From the theatre description, cause they do such a good job: “Following a recent tragic event, a celebrity entrepreneur- scientist and his fiancée find themselves inhabiting an abandoned estate home in Northern Ireland. While trying to piece together what happened, they find themselves visited by some mischievous nosey neighbours, ghosts of the past, and a wind that howls with suspicious fury. This quick-witted, suspenseful, thriller will keep you on the edge of your seat.”
Actually Edwin (Oliver Georgiou) is so celebrated a scientist, for inventing an implant that takes away the appetite and a food supplement that has almost no calories, that he escapes with his fiancée Aurora (Kristen Da Silva) to the quiet-wilds of Northern Ireland to a huge house that was arranged by his ‘lawyer’ friend. It’s shabby, a bit run-down and not in a quaint way, and the wind howls with an eeriness like no other place. The house is at the top of a bluff, which is different than a cliff, but just as deadly if you lost your footing.
Edwin’s previous girlfriend met an untimely end mysteriously and he’s trying to escape that too. As Edwin, Oliver Georgiou is dashing, pompous and a touch mysterious. Aurora, a sprightly Kristen Da Silva, is an artist who has helped Edwin with the design of the packaging of his inventions and is the adoring fiancée.
Popping in when Edwin and Aurora least expect it are Dylan (Alex Furber) and his grandmother Marion (Mary Pitt) who live next door. Dylan is a man of few words but when Alex Furber who plays Dylan speaks those few words, they are usually to put Dylan in his place. Edwin believes
Dylan is a country bumpkin. Dylan constantly proves he’s not. As Marion, Mary Pitt is piss and vinegar with a dollop of Splenda. She is no nonsense, smart, wily and watchful. You keep your eyes on her as she keeps her eyes on everything. And there’s plenty to see.
Beckie Morris has designed a dandy set that has mystery in every corner. Apparitions appear from nowhere. That curtained window must hide secrets, you are sure of it. It’s to director David Nairn’s credit that he has you looking everywhere for anything that might jump at you. He has created a dandy show in which the sound of that wind will created dingles down the spine. Rebecca Picherack knows how to get her lights to flick and flutter creating the right kind of angst. And playwright Kristen Da Silva will have you listening hard for the clues that somebody is not to be trusted. Yes, it’s easy to sit on the edge of your seat with The Bluff. But keeping that seat and the seat of your pants ‘clean’ might be another matter.
Theatre Orangeville presents:
Opened: March 17, 2023.
Closes: April 2, 2023.
Running time: about 2 hours (One intermission)
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
Hello . I was wondering if this production is suitable for children 11 and 13 years old?
Thanks, John
Hm. Considering what children see on the news and play on video games, I’ll say yes, this is ok for kids 11 and 13. Do they usually go to the theatre? Lynn Slotkin