The Belgrade Theatre, Coventry

Energy and vitality are what rush the audience through this classic murder case. Tim Jackson explores physical comedy with such pace that you, just like the actors (quite literally) will need a drag of an inhaler to break from laughing. There isn’t a single depletion in enthusiasm throughout.  

We are captured by the visual dynamic as the three performers unravel the mysterious death of Sir Charles Baskerville, his family line haunted by the suspicious hound of Dartmoor.

Jack Ferretti, Niall Ransome and Serena Manteghi are hilariously aware of their own performativity. They point out the accents they cannot do and expose the multi-roles they play by talking back to themselves behind a prop or after removing their cloak, suddenly acting as another character. This not only reveals the actors’ versatility to create so many rich characters, but makes for a satirical farce that reduces a complex storyline to a thrilling journey through the moors.

The visual design is striking, with smoke crawling across stage in its masses as the actors’ trek across the hills. Their destination of Baskerville Hall, a symbolic reminder of the Baskerville’s looming fate, stands high upstage throughout the show. The mansion is grand and overpowering, visible throughout with warm lights glowing in its windows.