The Woman in Black at the Orchard Theatre, Dartford, even scares its writer, Susan Hill

It's considered one of the most chilling stage shows - so much so that even the author of The Woman in Black admits it still scares her.

Running in the West End for 30 years, and made into a film starring Daniel Radcliffe in 2012, the show is adapted from Susan Hill's original novel by Stephen Mallatratt, and the show's run in Dartford falls over Halloween.

The adaptation of Susan Hill’s bestselling novel tells the story of a lawyer obsessed with a curse that he believes has been cast over his family by the spectre of a "woman in black."

He engages a young actor to help him tell his story and exorcise the fear that grips his soul. As they delve into his darkest memories, they find themselves caught up in a world of eerie marshes and moaning winds.

Not a horror tale, Susan Hill describes her story as very much a ghost story. She said: "When Stephen wrote to me asking if he could adapt it I thought it was mad but it’s a truly remarkable piece of theatre.

"The play is very true to the book and yet simultaneously very different by nature of being a piece of theatre. It works brilliantly in theatrical terms and it is still my book, but it is also not – and that is exciting."

"I’ve seen it so many times and yet sometimes it even makes me jump," she said. "I like to watch the show from is from the wings and be able to see the audience from that angle. It’s especially good when you have school parties in who aren’t expecting to be frightened."

On Halloween night, for the show's run at the Orchard Theatre, there will be an extra scary bonus. There will be a pre-show immersive experience in the foyer when students from the Miskin Theatre at North Kent College,will be mingling in character with theatregoers.

The Woman in Black is at the Orchard Theatre, Dartford, from Monday, October 28 to Saturday November 2. To book tickets go to orchardtheatre.co.uk or call 01322 220000.

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