Tara led the cast in a brilliant, powerful performance. Her governess is naïve and sweet, yet by the end changed by the events. Even as audience members, we felt her frustration that no one was listening to her, or even hearing her out. Both the direction and the writing lean into the gothic stereotypes of women and the idea of hysteria. It’s an important moment to reflect: does this still happen today? Have we really changed all that much?

In a similar way to The Woman in Black, we flash back and forth to create the narrative of what seems to be an interrogation between our main character and an unnamed man (also played by Jim Fish), who did an impressive job in both roles throughout. This back and forth, while needed to connect the plot, at times felt slightly circular and slowed the pace. The choice to have the actors playing the child characters, Flora (Kathleen McAuley Irvine) and Miles (Toby Beynon), also play the ghosts in the production was an exciting twist. At times, I think, due to sightlines and perhaps moments feeling too subtle, the effect was lost on me, but both actors were committed and powerful in their performances — especially McAuley Irvine, who had the challenge of playing a literal child. She was sweet and equally unnerving in the way only children can be. Beynon was a fantastic counterpart and also had a chilling edge. Why was he kicked out of school? These are the questions that kept the audience engaged even when the plot felt slightly muddy. Katy Slater as Mrs Grose was a delight on stage and in some ways was our only connection to the outside world. She gave a committed and contained performance and at times offered little yet well-needed humour. I looked forward to each of her appearances: what would we learn this time?

All together, this was a great cast, with an additional appearance by Janita Mikkola as a mysterious cloaked presence.