Susan Hill’s novel The Small Hand that has been adapted for the stage by Clive Francis comes to The Yvonne Arnaud Theatre this week from Monday 20 to Saturday 25 September. Originally written as a spine-chilling thriller, this production is presented by Bill Kenwright and directed by Clive Francis and promises to have you on the edge of your seat.
Susan Hill is probably best known for writing ‘The Woman in Black’, which was adapted into the most terrifying stage play ever presented and has been running in the West End for more than 25 years. It was also turned into a blockbuster film in 2012 featuring Daniel Radcliffe and in the same year, Susan Hill was also appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the Birthday Honours for services to literature. The Small Hand, which had mixed reviews when it was published as a book in 2010 then had a lot to live up to if it was going to match the success of its author.
The plot follows historic art dealer Adam Snow, as he appears to have a series of strange and somewhat paranormal experiences that cause him to suffer from acute anxiety, eventually ending with a complete mental meltdown. Adam finds himself swept up in a series of events that see him stumbling upon the White House; a grand old country manor in Sussex that has been derelict for decades since the death of its owner. The house has a tragic past that Mr Snow is unwittingly intertwined with and as his visions of ‘The Small Hand’ of a child grabbing him become more frequent and disturbing, a dark history unveils itself.
The play only has a cast list of three, with Andrew Lancel, who is probably best known for his role as Frank Foster in Coronation Street playing Adam Snow. Lancel did a commendable job in remembering his lines without fault considering he features in every single act and is on stage for the duration of the play, however, his delivery was somewhat less impressive. Unfortunately, much the same could be said about Diane Keen and Robert Duncan who play the narrators and all the other cameo roles that feature in the play. Although some of the characters are brought to life with the odd comic line in between some dodgy accents, the uninspiring script and lack of stage chemistry between the three really highlights the flaws in this production.
Having said that, the creative crew must be richly rewarded for a fabulous stage presentation that really did help bring the story to life. Elroy Ashmore as Designer, Nick Richings for Lighting and Nina Dunn for Projection really deserve a mention as their work created a scene that was visually striking and captivated the crowd. Dan Samson as Sound Director also did a sterling job keeping the audience on its toes with loud and jumpy interludes that were sometimes unexpected and at other times at the climax of a scene.
Unfortunately if you go and watch The Small Hand expecting a gripping, tense thriller of the ilk of The Woman in Black, then you are going to be disappointed. What I am sure must be a rather tense and intriguing book, has not transferred to the stage particularly well in this rendition and I fear has not been cast well either. I can imagine that conversely, the story could work quite well as a film, with more clever cinematography helping to build tension, however, the frights here are more likely to come from loud noises than clever script or quick character interplay.
Susan Hill has undoubted talent as a writer and this production yet may still prove popular over time, but there is a lot more work to be done before it reaches the heady heights of its big sister. Nothing can be taken away from the aesthetics of the show or its ability to make you jump, but as a pure piece of theatre it has a long way to go before leaving audiences trembling with fear.
James Martin