REVIEW: The Monkey’s Paw at The Hope Theatre 21 Oct – 8 Nov 2025

“The perfect trick or treat” ★★★★

W.W. Jacobs’s ‘The Monkey’s Paw’ is a classic early twentieth century horror story, instantly giving it an extra chill by virtue of its age and the mysteries of history. At its heart though, it’s a story about the dangers of messing with fate and the consequences of the weight of grief.

So just in time for the darker nights, this new production at The Hope Theatre, adapted by Infinite Space Theatre and directed with precision and imagination by Leah Townley, reimagines the Edwardian ghost story into a full-length play set at the dawn of the first World War.

We follow John and Jenny White (Steven Maddocks and Josephine Rogers), a working-class couple whose life is thrown into turmoil when John brings home the titular tiny paw from the British Museum archive where he works. This single grotesque hand will go on to unpick their lives by granting a series of wishes, big and small, each of which will come with a deadly price. 

Right away, the production’s greatest strength lies in its meticulous and immersive mise-en-scène – these are high production values for the fringe, and a real treat. Hannah Williams’s set design is rich with detail and atmosphere, the stage dominated by great sheets that hang like oppressive ghosts, swallowing the space in a sad, spectral gulp as soon as you walk in. The props, designed by Gisela Mulindwa and Gabi Maddocks, are equally as impressive: from a chilling mummified baby to the puppet-like imaginary child and the unsettlingly shrivelled paw itself. 

Sound and light too are expertly handled by Peter Michaels and Alex Forey respectively, who together create a cadaverous stage presence where every creak and shadow build tension and unease. 

Against such a strong visual and atmospheric backdrop though, the performances occasionally feel overshadowed. Maddocks and Rogers perform heartily and are solid throughout, but perhaps comparatively weaker – though Rogers’s later monologue in the final act is a surprising last flourish.

Credit, though, to the highly effective opening few scenes, which introduce the audience to the story of John and Jenny White. These set the tone of the piece form the off with a simple and creative movement montage taking us through their life. This technique is followed throughout the whole production, with chillingly simple portrayals of miscarriage, war, and madness.

The downside of this, however, is that due to the seamless use of metaphor elsewhere in the play, it does get itself a bit TOO convincing with the blurring of the real and the imagined, to the point that there were many moments I became unsure of what exactly was going on; whether their son Herbert was a living being or not; whether the action was playing out on stage or in the mind; whether time, or place, had passed, and how much. Now, in this sort of genre, it kind of works, but I don't think it's deliberate in this case and often ends up leaving things feeling a bit restlessly unsatisfying, like an unfinished yawn.

Notable though are the parallels with the current cost of living climate and the Whites' own heartbreaking financial struggles, giving the whole piece an eerie timelessness and timeliness in more ways than one. So overall, this is an excellent, classy, and classic ghost story for the spooky season, staged with intelligence and flair. 

So grab your pumpkins as soon as you can and head to The Hope for the perfect trick or treat.

The Monkey’s Paw by W. W. Jacobs

Devised, written and produced by Infinite Space Theatre

Directed by Leah Townley

The Hope Theatre, 21 Oct – 8 Nov 2025

Box Office: https://www.thehopetheatre.com/themonkeyspaw 

Reviewed by Alix Owen