Review by Simon Jenner, May 24th 2025
A father wants his daughter to return with him to a life of squalor. But he knows something to make that even more dangerous. An artist son is returning home from Paris to his mother in Norway: but not for happy reasons. When he meets the young woman, a maid in the house, sparks fly. But should they? And what hold does a Pastor have on that mother, or she on him? Sins of the father, mother, elders everywhere are visited on the young. Written in 1881, Ibsen’s Ghosts was banned for obscenity, including the UK. Using Richard Eyre’s fleet 2013 version (which won an Oliver, when premiered at the Almeida), it arrives at New Venture Theatre, Brighton directed by Jerry Lyne till May 31st.
Amelia Leigh, Sarah Tansey and Sebastian O’Driscoll-Henderson. Photo Credit: Strat Mastoris
Regina Enstrand (Amelia Leigh) maid of the grand family Aveling, resists her ne’er-do-well carpenter father Jacob (Robert J Shepherd) who wants her to look after his shady project of a seaman’s refuge. He’s recruited Pastor Manders (Alex Blyth) to his cause and cashflow. Blyth plays the self-deluding Manders as a smugly coercive Trollope prelate. He’s a study in how the repressed project fear as control. The way Blyth manouevres Helen Alving into agreeing to no insurance for an orphanage, built with her dead husband’s money, is bullying with incense. Shepherd’s wily, wheedling Enstrand secretes a crude-oil version of Manders’ rancid myrrh. Yet he can blackmail with the sublime.
Sarah Tansey’s Helene Alving dominates this production as a crumbling colossus: both revealing and revealed to. Protective towards Regina yet alarmed, Tansey’s all laisse-majéste to Shepherd’s watchful Enstrand. But with Manders there’s history and chemistry. Discovering her husband’s character at 19, Helene fled to the man she’d wanted to marry: theology student Manders. Who fearing reputation sends her straight back. He blandly surmises the husband reformed. It’s clear Helene still harbours passions. Against Tansey’s imploring, taking floor-space inch by inch towards him, Blyth’s performance shows Manders’ fright. Tansey’s magnificent. Both in showing rekindled desire mixed with anxiety, and a calibrated explosion. Only with Helene’s “You have no idea!” about the truth of her marriage, does Tansey’s full voice ring out with anguish.
Production Manager Ian Black, Stage Manager Gaby Bowring, Production Assistant Jason Lever
Set Design Steve Hutton, Set Build Simon Glazier, Dan Tranter, George Walter, Chris Tew. Set Painting Simon Glazier, Manda Steff, Annie Sheppard
Properties Bryony Weaver, Hair and Makeup Richi Blennerhassett
Costume Design: Karen Hindmarsh, Costume Assistant Jackie Jones
Lighting Design Sabrina Giles, Assistant Lighting Design Chris Dent
Lighting Operation Sabrina Giles, Tamsin Mastoris & Chris Dent
Sound Design Ian Black, Sound Operation Ian Black, Chris Dent
Script Prompt Jason Lever
Poster Tamsin & Strat Mastoris, Programme Tamsin Mastoris, Photography Strat Mastoris
Publicity and Social Media Elysa Hyde, Video Interview Alistsir Lock and Arun Varghese
Health and Safety Ian Black.
Many thanks Box Office FOH and Volunteers
Alex Blyth and Sarah Tansey. Photo Credit: Strat Mastoris
