Gaslighting play takes stage this weekend

Intrigue and suspense take the WILLow LeaVes of Hope stage this weekend in the Victorian thriller “Angel Street,” presented by the Passion For Acting Theatre Company.

Set in London, England, in 1880,“Angel Street” explores what happens when unexplained events and exploitation collide to make life stranger than fiction.

Written by British dramatist Patrick Hamilton in 1938, “Angel Street” tells the story of Jack and Bella Manningham, who begin to wonder who is playing tricks on them when unexplained events become a regular occurrence in their home. From misplaced objects to strange noises and an erratic gas light that inexplicably turns up and down of its own accord, Jack begins to question his wife’s sanity.

Jack’s insistence on trying to convince Bella that she is imagining the fluctuating gas light and that things are not as she believes them to be places her in a delicate mental state.

When Inspector Rough enters the picture while investigating the unsolved murder of Alice Barlow, who lived in the residence above the Manninghams nearly two decades ago, he stumbles onto more than he could anticipate.

Offering moments of levity despite its dark backdrop, “Angel Street” may be a familiar story to those who have seen the 1940’s cinematic adaptation, called “Gaslight,” directed by George Cukor and starring Charles Boyer and Ingrid Bergman.

Playgoers can enjoy a full meal, including entrée, beverage and dessert,.