We entered the intimate space of the Irene Mitchell Studio Theatre for “Rope” to the sound of eery soft music and smoke filling up the space.  I was immersed in the story the second I sat down.  I loved the setting of the stage in the middle and the audience surrounding it, it really made it an intensifying experience.

In the role of Wyndham Brandon is Jasper McLorinan.  He plays the role with grit and gusto, the way he walked around  the stage eyeing off all the other characters was deliciously terrifying and definitely brought his own to the role.   I admired the way he became more and more brutal as the show progressed.  Also equally terrifying was Flynn Lhuede as Charles Granillo, the way and McLorinan worked off each other when discussing murder and their passion for it.  I loved the evil cheekiness he brought to the role of Granillo.  Leila Arden plays the role of Estella Nagas, she to me was the most innocent character of the cast while still eager to talk about committing murderous acts, I loved the way she was both naughty and innocent at the same time.  The way the three leads worked off each other was particularly impressive, they were again deliciously terrifying.

In the role of Kenneth Raglan is Nicholas Stackpole.  He brought a bit more of a child like vibe to his character, which made for a very creepy portrayal.  He showed a high amount of skill and precision in his performance.  Director Mark Yeates was playing the role of Johnstone Kentley in this performance, he was fantastically intimidating and should be highly commending for having to step into the role.

Joshua Saunders as Sabot, the clueless butler is the comic relief of the show and he more than brings it with his ditsy one liners and physical comedy.  My favourite though was Riley Atwell as Rupert Cadell.  I loved his character because he came off as friendly and playful in the beginning but progressively became darker and somewhat psychotic as he became more aware of the crimes that Brandon and Granillo had committed.  By the end of the show he unleashed and became erratic and I was not the only one who jumped a few times.

A Shout out must also go to the sound and lighting designers (Raphael Bradbury and Viv Hargreaves) who created a eerily beautiful and haunting mix, especially in the thunderstorm scenes.

Congratulations to Mark Yeates for creating a highly professional and polished production on what is one of my favourite genres.