Millie Gray
The Ocean at the End of the Lane is a brilliant show that I was immediately recommending to others. From the moment the characters entered the other dimension I was hooked and continued on the edge of my seat throughout the second act.
​
Fly Davis's set design was magnificent with its ability to change and adapt to the different worlds and stages. It worked really well with all the other elements of the show bringing everything together and managing to encapsulate both the real world and the other, mysterious dimension using a range of props and clever staging as well as the lighting that worked especially well with the stage design. The lights around the doors was one of the really clever uses that springs to mind when reflecting on the show. It could be used simply as a light outside a door but worked brilliantly for those scenes of tension where you know something is lurking beyond and simply the turning of of lights was enough to build suspense.
​
Reflecting on the lighting brings me onto the special effects throughout that had me and my fellow students truly shocked and we continue to question how these were even possible days after seeing the show such as the moving through doorways and the shocking moment the bloodied arm rises through the bath plughole.
​
​
​
​
​
​
Samuel Wyer's puppetry is also something to be celebrated with the huge flea being truly scary but still holding that mystical feeling that the other world has. The use of actors inside this puppet was also extremely clever and added to the movement of the whole piece. The swimming scene where the main character become puppets was a sweet addition that allowed us to see the potential beauty of the other world and highlight the scale of this "ocean". The bird costumes also by Wyer deserve a mention as they were both terrifying and incredible to watch with really clever movements providing an almost dance like sequence that worked extremely well with the tense music and extremely clever destruction of the set. The tone and atmosphere created by all the elements of this piece was a triumph with the perfect balance of mystical and otherworldly with dark and eerie.
​
Overall, this show stood out as one of the most impactful pieces I have seen so far this year with all the different elements of theatre working so well together resulting in a really encapsulating performance.
​
​
The Ocean at the End of the Lane
