Shudders - 31st October 2011

In recent years Cardiff based group Inky Quills Productions have been synonymous with providing high quality comedies but this autumn they have branched out into more dramatic territory. Last Wednesday and Halloween evening they produced 2 short "horror" plays under the heading of "Shudders". These ten minute pieces were performed in atmospheric venues, the basement of " Ten Feet Tall" and upstairs at Dempsey's.

Limiting the audience to a maximum of 14 persons sitting per show , this was intimate theatre at its most compelling. "The Photographer" involved the Victorian practice of arranging for a dead body to be captured on film for posterity. This simple, if macabre premise was brought to life by the quality of the acting. A softly spoken Laura Jeffs played the widow ( not quite as happily married as we originally expected) and the terrifying Alan Humphreys as the title character. As well as his previous comedy roles his recent performance as Mercutio with Bare Knuckle Theatre proved he is a truly versatile actor and how he can add scary to his CV. Bethany Seddon's male-up took full advantage of his tall, thin frame, which when combined with a wheeze that came from the grave, created a truly ghostly figure.

"Dust" revolves around the hanging of Mrs Harkness for allegedly murdering her lover in Pennsylvania. We see the grieving husband camped at her unmarked grave, befriended by a Mrs Peel who has bought a house overloooking the grave of her deceased husband. The plot is provided by announcements of the trial and the subsequent hanging of Mrs Harkness but again it is the intensity of the performances that draw the audience into the story. George Goding ( more animated than his performance in " The Photographer") is menacingly hypnotic while (Inky Quills newcomer) Claire Hovey creates an emotional intensity that is quite alarming.

Both of these pieces work because the writer and director allow time for the characters to breathe. The shortness of the plays does not encourage writer Rick Allden to fill the time with constant dialogue and first-time director Jon Holcroft allows the silences and pauses to speak more than continual conversation.

In these days of over-blown productions it is good to know that less than can still be more. Also, in the current recession climate cost is important and for £1 a show this was a bargain. It could be the way forward and I was encouraged to hear of a student who came as they loved theatre but generally couldn't afford to go.

Fortunately, these low-key shows received large and enthusiastic audiences. Those who came may have witnessed the future of theatre.