Reviewed by Judy Richter
There's a lot of ambiguity in Henry
James' novella
"The Turn of the Screw," which playwright Jeffrey Hatcher has adapted for the stage. The San
Jose Stage Company production
directed by Rick Singleton captures much of that ambiguity. Presented in 90 minutes
without intermission, "The Turn of the Screw" is set in the late 19th
century with most of the action taking place at Bly, a dreary, remote mansion
in the Essex area of England. It's done with two actors labeled The Man (Michael
C. Storm) and
The Woman (Chloë Bronzan). She plays a young governess hired to care for two orphaned
children at Bly. He portrays the other three characters seen by the audience:
the London businessman who hired the governess to look after his niece and
nephew; Mrs. Grose, Bly's elderly housekeeper; and Miles, the 10-year-old
nephew.
The
governess is looking forward to teaching her two young charges, but she soon
discovers that 5-year-old Flora doesn't speak and that Miles has been sent home
after being expelled from school. She also learns that her predecessor died
after a torrid affair with the valet, who committed suicide at Bly. She comes
to believe that their ghosts are present and that they're trying to possess the
children's souls.
The
ambiguity arises when the audience must decide whether there truly are ghosts
or whether they're the product of an overactive imagination fueled by sexual
repression. The first hints of the ambiguity arise when the governess
apparently misunderstands some of her employer's words, seeming to hear
"aversion" as "a virgin," for example. Then there's the
relationship between her and Miles, who, along with Flora, saw much of the
misconduct between the valet and previous governess. This experience has
apparently made Miles more sexually aware than is appropriate for a boy his
age. However, when he seems to try to act on it with the new governess, one
isn't sure who's initiating the conduct.
Bronzan
is well cast as the governess, reflecting her growing fears as well as her
concern for the children's welfare. Storm creates his three quite different
characters just by changing his tone of voice and physical demeanor. The
appropriately dreary set and lighting are by Michael Palumbo. Michele Wynne has created the black period
costumes, and the sound design, sometimes overdone, is by Nion Dickson.
"The
Turn of the Screw" is a suspenseful, ghostly yarn, a good choice for the
days leading up to Halloween.
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