Review: DEATH BELLES, Old Red Lion Theatre

Photo credit: Dexter Robinson

At the Old Red Lion Theatre, Death Belles brings together four short plays that circle around guilt, loss and the things people would rather keep hidden. Written by Annie Power and directed by Penny Gkritzapi, the evening is built on a simple idea: ordinary people can be far more unsettling than anything supernatural.

The four pieces – All That Remains, The Prophecy, Faulty, and Threshold – each have their own tone, but they share the same feeling of unease, and none of them rely on big shocks or jump scares. Instead, the tension sits just under the surface, the sort that creeps up on you rather than announcing itself. It’s a smart approach, and it suits the intimacy of the Old Red Lion space well.

The acting by Finella Waddilove, George Bird, Harriet Main, and Naimh O’Donnell is excellent throughout. The cast keep everything grounded, letting the writing breathe without trying to oversell the fear, and in a venue this small, performances have nowhere to hide, but they don’t need to. It’s sharp, understated work that makes the stories feel uncomfortably plausible.

The staging is simple and confident – the set barely changes, but the lighting and sound design do more than enough to create atmosphere. A subtle lighting change is often all it takes to shift the mood completely, and it’s used with care rather than spectacle.

If there’s one thing that could make the night stronger, it’s a clearer thread linking the four stories together. Each works on its own, but a stronger connection would give the evening a sharper shape, however, as it stands, it’s an effective anthology with a few standout moments that linger once the lights go up.

Death Belles is an atmospheric and confidently performed anthology that proves a whisper can be far more unsettling than a scream.

**** Four stars

Reviewed by: Lisamarie Lamb

Death Belles plays at London’s Old Red Lion Theatre until 22 October, with further info here.