REVIEW
✭✭✭✭✭ 5/5
✭✭✭✭✭ 5/5
SAMANTHA WOMACK
STARS IN
THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN
Palace Theatre, Westcliff on Sea
18th - 23rd February 2019
STARS IN
THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN
Palace Theatre, Westcliff on Sea
18th - 23rd February 2019
For the second time in just over a month, another nail-biting thriller set on board a train, arrives at the Palace Theatre and is playing to packed houses all week.
Recently, we had Juliet Mills as a lady vanishing on a train in 1930's Austria. This time we have Samantha Womack in a very contemporary tale, The Girl On The Train.
This new play is based on the highly successful 2015 novel by Paula Hawkins, which has already been adapted for the big screen. I was wondering, on entering the theatre last night, how a story involving flashbacks on a fast moving train would translate to the stage. What we have is a tense psychological thriller, where nothing is what it seems to be, which gradually reveals the truth through a series of revelations, and grips you from the very start.
To try and explain the plot without giving too much away, or indeed just to explain the story at all, is a challenge. Rachel, a girl with a drink problem, is living in a fairly run down flat, where she is visited by her ex-husband. She is troubled by something she thinks she has seen from the train on her daily commute. The train goes past the home she used to share with Tom, who is now with Anna. However, it is a young couple, Megan and Scott, living in the same block, who she often sees on their balcony as the train flashes past. They occupy her thoughts the most, to a point of obsession. Megan has recently disappeared. (Oh yes, another vanishing lady...!) The whole premise of the play hinges on what Rachel THINKS she has seen, or has she? She is an alcoholic and suffers blackouts, so how reliable can her memory be?
The play twists and turns and during the first half has a fairly confusing flashback timescale. It is not an easy one to follow by any means. You need to concentrate hard. However, during the second half, things become clearer, and it is very satisfying to finally finding out what really happened on that fateful Saturday night.
At the centre of the story Samantha Womack, as Rachel, puts in a real storming performance. Looking tired and dishevelled, she is never off stage and is very convincing. She effortlessly takes us with her on her tense and scary journey, never over-doing it. She is always in control of her role.
There is excellent support from Oliver Farnsworth as Scott, whose life is invaded by Rachel, after his wife has disappeared, and Adam Jackson-Smith as her ex- husband Tom. I also much enjoyed John Dougall's dry-witted Taggart-like Detective Inspector Gaskill. A very charismatic performance.
It is also a challenge for the creative team to keep this tale moving, as slow set changes would slow down the momentum, but designer James Cotterill has done a great job, aided by use of projections and excellent sound design too. We so often, as audience members, take these things for granted, but so much depends on lighting and sound to create the right mood.
There is an interesting article in the programme about the current popularity of thrillers, whether as novels, films or on stage as they provide great escapism. Due to the popularity of this very well known thriller, there are only gallery seats remaining for the rest of this week. Book now if you're lucky enough to get a seat!
Review: Andrew Walters
Recently, we had Juliet Mills as a lady vanishing on a train in 1930's Austria. This time we have Samantha Womack in a very contemporary tale, The Girl On The Train.
This new play is based on the highly successful 2015 novel by Paula Hawkins, which has already been adapted for the big screen. I was wondering, on entering the theatre last night, how a story involving flashbacks on a fast moving train would translate to the stage. What we have is a tense psychological thriller, where nothing is what it seems to be, which gradually reveals the truth through a series of revelations, and grips you from the very start.
To try and explain the plot without giving too much away, or indeed just to explain the story at all, is a challenge. Rachel, a girl with a drink problem, is living in a fairly run down flat, where she is visited by her ex-husband. She is troubled by something she thinks she has seen from the train on her daily commute. The train goes past the home she used to share with Tom, who is now with Anna. However, it is a young couple, Megan and Scott, living in the same block, who she often sees on their balcony as the train flashes past. They occupy her thoughts the most, to a point of obsession. Megan has recently disappeared. (Oh yes, another vanishing lady...!) The whole premise of the play hinges on what Rachel THINKS she has seen, or has she? She is an alcoholic and suffers blackouts, so how reliable can her memory be?
The play twists and turns and during the first half has a fairly confusing flashback timescale. It is not an easy one to follow by any means. You need to concentrate hard. However, during the second half, things become clearer, and it is very satisfying to finally finding out what really happened on that fateful Saturday night.
At the centre of the story Samantha Womack, as Rachel, puts in a real storming performance. Looking tired and dishevelled, she is never off stage and is very convincing. She effortlessly takes us with her on her tense and scary journey, never over-doing it. She is always in control of her role.
There is excellent support from Oliver Farnsworth as Scott, whose life is invaded by Rachel, after his wife has disappeared, and Adam Jackson-Smith as her ex- husband Tom. I also much enjoyed John Dougall's dry-witted Taggart-like Detective Inspector Gaskill. A very charismatic performance.
It is also a challenge for the creative team to keep this tale moving, as slow set changes would slow down the momentum, but designer James Cotterill has done a great job, aided by use of projections and excellent sound design too. We so often, as audience members, take these things for granted, but so much depends on lighting and sound to create the right mood.
There is an interesting article in the programme about the current popularity of thrillers, whether as novels, films or on stage as they provide great escapism. Due to the popularity of this very well known thriller, there are only gallery seats remaining for the rest of this week. Book now if you're lucky enough to get a seat!
Review: Andrew Walters
About the play/cast...
Samantha Womack stars in a new production of The Girl on the Train, a gripping thriller based on the internationally acclaimed number one best-selling novel by Paula Hawkins and the Dreamworks film. The Girl on the Train begins a major tour of the UK & Ireland on 21 January 2019 in Milton Keynes.
Samantha plays Rachel Watson who longs for a different life. Her only escape is the perfect couple she watches through the train window every day, happy and in love. Or so it appears. When Rachel learns that the woman she’s been secretly watching has suddenly disappeared, she finds herself as a witness and even a suspect in a thrilling mystery in which she will face bigger revelations than she could ever have anticipated.
Samantha plays Rachel Watson who longs for a different life. Her only escape is the perfect couple she watches through the train window every day, happy and in love. Or so it appears. When Rachel learns that the woman she’s been secretly watching has suddenly disappeared, she finds herself as a witness and even a suspect in a thrilling mystery in which she will face bigger revelations than she could ever have anticipated.
|
Samantha Womack has starred extensively in television, film and theatre. She is best known for playing Ronnie Mitchell in BBC1’s EastEnders. Other television credits include leading roles in Mount Pleasant and the hugely popular Game On. Her recent films include: Kingsman: The Golden Circle and Kingsman: The Secret Service alongside Colin Firth. Samantha recently played Morticia in a tour of The Addams Family.
Samantha said: "Having been thoroughly captivated by the novel, the opportunity to take on a role like this is incredibly exciting. I’ve been fascinated by thrillers for a long time and this kind of storytelling, like Hitchcock’s Rear Window, offers us a voyeurs journey into a world which is dangerous and full of suspense.” |
|
Joining Samantha in the cast is Oliver Farnworth as Scott. Best known for playing Andy Carver in Coronation Street, Oliver’s other TV credits include Mr Selfridge, The Royal and Hollyoaks. Further casting is yet to be announced.
Paula Hawkins’ novel is an international phenomenon, selling over twenty million copies world-wide. Produced by Simon Friend, Amblin Entertainment and Josh Andrews, The Girl on the Train is adapted by Rachel Wagstaff & Duncan Abel and is directed by Anthony Banks with designs by James Cotterill. Further casting is yet to be announced. www.storyhousepr.co.uk Southend, Palace Theatre www.southendtheatres.org.uk |
|
Girl on the Train Tour Schedule
|
Southend Palace Theatre www.southendtheatres.org.uk/Online/about-palace-theatre
18 – 23 February 2019 01702 351135. Leicester Curve www.curveonline.co.uk/tickets 4 – 9 March 2019 0116 242 3595 Liverpool Playhouse www.everymanplayhouse.com/whats-on 11 – 16 March 2019 0151 709 4776 Grand Theatre, Wolverhampton www.grandtheatre.co.uk/ 18 – 23 March 2019 01902 429212 King’s Theatre, Edinburgh www.capitaltheatres.com/your-visit/kings-theatre 25 – 30 March 2019 0131 529 6000 The Lowry, Salford www.thelowry.com/ 1 – 6 April 2019 0843 208 6000 Theatre Royal, Bath www.theatreroyal.org.uk/ 8 – 13 April 2019 01225 448844 |
Theatre Royal, Glasgow www.atgtickets.com/venues/theatre-royal-glasgow/
15 – 20 April 2019 0844 871 7647 Royal & Derngate, Northampton www.royalandderngate.co.uk 22 – 27 April 2019 01604 624811 Theatre Royal, Newcastle www.theatreroyal.co.uk/ 29 April – 4 May 2019 08448 11 21 21 Orchard Theatre, Dartford www.orchardtheatre.co.uk/ 6 – 11 May 2019 01322 220000 Belgrade Theatre, Coventry www.belgrade.co.uk/ 13 – 18 May 2019 024 7655 3055 Theatre Royal, Nottingham trch.co.uk/ 20 – 25 May 2019 0115 989 5555 Shrewsbury Theatre Severn www.theatresevern.co.uk/ 27 May – 1 June 2019 01743 281281 Bord Gais Energy Theatre, Dublin www.bordgaisenergytheatre.ie/ 3 – 8 June 2019 +353 (1) 677 7999 Grand Opera House, Belfast www.goh.co.uk 10 – 15 June 2019 028 9024 1919 Theatre Royal, Brighton www.atgtickets.com/venues/theatre-royal-brighton/ 17 – 21 June 2019 0844 871 7615 Sheffield Lyceum www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk/ 24 – 29 June 2019 0114 249 6000 Norwich Theatre Royal www.theatreroyalnorwich.co.uk/ 1 – 6 July 2019 01603 63 00 00. On sale from 9 November Yvonne Arnaud Theatre, Guildford www.yvonne-arnaud.co.uk/ 8 – 13 July 2019 01483 440000 |