Haunting
Published 21 Oct 2010 11:00
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James Taylor chats to the star of the scariest show on the Windsor stage
THE ghostly visions of Charles Dickens will haunt Windsor’s Theatre Royal next month.
The Haunting, a new play starring Paul Nicholas and Sean Maguire, is inspired by five of the famous author’s ghost stories.
When young book dealer David Filde is employed by a former associate of his uncle to catalogue an impressive library, he finds an array of rare and antiquated books.
But as a series of strange and unexplained events conspire to keep Filde from his work, he realises he must convince his sceptical employer that the mysterious phenomena he is experiencing are real. Mr Nicholas, 64, said: “There is an atmosphere about Windsor, with the castle and the old town; it lends itself well to a ghost story.
“I don’t actually know how frightening it’s going to be.
“Hopefully it will be an experience you can really only get in the theatre.”
Mr Nicholas has been performing on stage, screen and in the pop charts since the 1960s, and had lead roles on the West End in the 1990s in productions of Barnum, The Mysterious Mr Love and Catch Me If You Can.
Despite his extensive theatre credits, he said The Haunting was only his second trip into the scary side of acting.
He said: “The only thing remotely similar is a production I did of Jekyll and Hyde (in 2006), but that was couched in knowing who the villain was right from the start.
“This, I think, is one of those things where the audience doesn’t know what’s going to happen.”
He said he and his co-star Sean Maguire - noted for his performances in Eastenders and Dangerfield - were deep into rehearsals.
He added: “Sean and I seem to be getting on quite well, which is very helpful. When there’s just two of you, there’s no chance of nipping off to have a break.
“The challenge for us before we get to Windsor is to know it inside out, and then we can be a bit free with it.
“None of us really know what’s going to happen, but it’s very nice to be doing something that isn’t a revival.
“Producers are loath to take a chance on something people haven’t heard of in these financially-stressed times.”
Mr Nicholas said he was looking forward to frightening the living daylights out of Windsor audiences.
He added: “I remember when I was a young boy, going to see films that were slightly adult, and spending most of the time with my head in my mother’s lap:
“ `Can I look yet?’ ‘No!’ `Can I look yet?’ `No!’ - so hopefully it’s a bit like that.
“I wouldn’t bring a young child to see this, but hopefully we can scare the audience while they’re having a good time.”
The Haunting opens at Theatre Royal, Thames Street, Windsor, on Tuesday, November 2, and runs until Saturday, November 6. For bookings, call 01753 853888 or visit www.theatreroyalwindsor.co.uk
This article appeared in Reading Chronicle 21 Oct 10
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