Sadly we missed The Ghost of Chesterton House in its first run, but thankfully for us it has recently remounted at Millfield Theatre near Edmonton in North London. Not knowing quite what to expect, other than it would likely be a much more theatrical style of event, it was refreshing to experience something spooky out of season. Scares aren’t just for Halloween!
Whilst waiting for our start time we could sit in the bar area of Millfield Theatre and enjoy a drink. We were promptly picked up and taken to an adjacent building where we had the usual safety briefings before we were invited in to Chesterton House. First up, it was great to see what was an impressive piece of set design as the room that the performance was to take place in felt like a worn around the edges dining room of a stately home.
The space is very intimate, with a maximum audience of 14 all sat around the dining table. Because of this arrangement, the performance takes place all around you in the room. This intimacy works well for the theatrical show that lasts about an hour.
Avoiding spoilers as much as possible, this is a two-handed show with compelling and energetic performances from the cast, hats off to them. As the narrative unfolds around you, there is a growing sense of dread and intrigue in who or what the Ghost of Chesterton House is. Throughout there are some fun jump scares and some suitably creepy points intertwined with the quieter moments. Our only very minor criticism would be that we felt there were a few narrative jumps that were a bit harder to follow.
We had a really enjoyable time at The Ghost of Chesterton House, which runs on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays through to the end of July. Definitely worth checking out if you’re in London and fancy watching a theatrical show that’s a bit different and also to satisfy any out of season need for scares.
