Would Stephen King be proud of this adaptation of his book “Misery” by Simon Moor. Probably not, but whose fault is it that it comes over so poorly in this production. Is it Nigel West’s direction that makes this one of the most boring plays to have visited the theatre or is it the cast? Certainly the poor lighting design by Mark Doubleday did not help, with arc lights shining into the faces of the audience making viewing uncomfortable in certain parts of the theatre. The set was about the best thing to be seen on the stage.

This is the story of an author who crashes his car in the snow and is befriended by a mad ex nurse who turns out to be one of his fans. Bizarre happenings ensue and you would think that that would make for a good plot, but in this production of the play it does not. The author Paul Sheldon is played by Leslie Grantham, who is unconvincing and struggles with the American accent. The nurse Annie Wilkes is played by Sandra Maitland, who makes a good job of her part. It takes two actors of equal ability to make a two person play work.

The audience clapped at the curtain call as the self conscious actors acknowledged the applause. Did they know? If you were a Stephen King fan maybe you went home contented, but if it was your first encounter with this story who knows what you were thinking. © BA

“Misery” is in York on the 13th of May, 2002 and then continues an extensive tour of Britain.