GASLIGHT

I have to admit that I’ve been a bit of a snob about theatre in the past couple of years. Well, not exactly a snob; it’s more that, since I have only so much time to devote to reviewing theatre, I’ve been neglecting smaller venues.  But when I noticed that this well-thought of theatre in Venice, the Pacific Resident, whose work I’ve enjoyed in the past, was doing the play Gaslight, the classic movie version of which I’m a fan, I knew that I had to adjust my weekend plans to attend the opening. And I’m glad that I did because it turned-out to be a very worthwhile production.

I’m also happy to have seen this show so that I have a legitimate reason to correct everyone who uses the term “to gaslight someone” wrong!!! (I’ll get to that later.)

I had erroneously thought that the Oscar-nominated 1944 American film was the very first version of this eerie tale. But I’ve now learned that it was actually a play first, (with its title being two words, Gas Light.) It enjoyed a very successful run on Broadway, being one of the longest-running plays in history, with almost thirteen hundred total performances!

I’m such a fan of intrigue, so Gaslight is right up my alley. The basic plot is that a Victorian husband in London tries to make his wife think she’s crazy, with the reason for that gradually being revealed. That’s all you need to know. And that all of the action takes place in just one day and night, even though the culmination was a long time coming for the characters. (I do have to say that the hours portrayed are actually a tad confusing, but it doesn’t really matter; I just went with it.)

I suggest you do not see one of the films, nor look up the play, before you see this rendition, so you can experience the drama as it unfolds. And then watch at least one of the movies later on to discern the differences. That’s actually just what I did, since I didn’t remember everything about the old movie. Because the entire topic really piqued my interest, I sought-out the 1940 British film, (which I had never even heard of before,) a couple of days after seeing this play. And, as much as I love old black-and-white psychological dramas, I must say that I actually enjoyed this play much more! So, good for you, Pacific Resident Theatre!

What makes the complicated scenario easy to follow in this production is that the cast of five all have excellent, and more importantly, understandable, English accents, each one showing their position in life. Not one time did anyone in the opening night audience have to whisper, “What did they say?,” to their seat-mate, which just might be a first!

Stuart W. Howard, as the retired detective, is great; he’s straight out of a ’40s movie. He does not miss a beat of dialogue while having to engage in tons of what actors refer to as “business.”  How he continues on with his lines while doing so much physical work is something special to behold. Jaxon Duff Gwillim, who plays the maniacal husband, (and reminds me a bit of both Rex Harrison and Cyril Ritchard,) is just the right amount of scary and creepy. Tania Getty, as the unfortunate victimized wife, valiantly does the heavy lifting of the quintet, and I loved her fast way of speaking; it’s so Gene Tierney! Rita Obermeyer and Miranda Wynne, as the two maids, add sufficiently to the narrative.

I don’t know if Gaslight is produced here exactly as written by Patrick Hamilton in 1938, or if any adjustments were made for the Pacific Resident’s petite stage. Either way, it works wonderfully. The whole play is done in just one room, so they get to the meat of the matter for the duration, as opposed to at least the British film, if not the American one, which had all kinds of auxiliary scenes, I’m assuming to try to keep the interest of the viewers. But this presentation doesn’t miss that fluff, (such as a music hall scene, complete with a Can-Can,) at all.

Taubert Nadalini’s beautiful set helps a lot. And the tea service dishes used for about half of the presentation made my mouth water, so big props to the prop people! I had to hold myself back from rushing the stage to pour a cuppa for myself!

And I must take note of my absolute favorite line in the script. It’s “Do not imagine you were the only piece of ivy on the garden wall.” I just have to figure-out a way to use it myself.

Now let’s get to the term “gaslighting,” which this play, and subsequent films, gave us. It’s not used in the narrative, of course; it was just coined, from the title and subject, in semi-modern days to reflect what the husband was doing to his wife, and, sadly, what some lunatics are still doing to each other. I hope the people who use it somewhat incorrectly these days finally take note of the real definition of what “gaslighting” is. In the play, the detective tells the wife, “You are being slowly and methodically driven out of your mind.” So, to gaslight someone means to manipulate them into questioning their own reality. People seem to overuse it nowadays, and in the wrong ways. They often use it in lieu of other societal terms, such as “ghosting,” thinking they’re the same thing, which they definitely are not.

In my post-show research, I actually found-out that the term entered the vernacular in 1961! My first recollection of anyone using it is in 1998, when Edie Falco’s character in the Broadway play, Side Man, tells her husband he’s gaslighting her, and all the Broadway literati loved it.

Before I wind-up this review, I have to say a few words about the lovely personnel at the theater. They were all so kind during intermission when I was having a slight issue with something; several of them, (especially Marilyn Fox, the Artistic Director,) were very willing to help me in any way they could. And the evening began with an absolutely adorable volunteer usher, Pietro, who could not have been more perfect, in every way.

The cast and crew also carried on so well in the face of a major technical problem after the first half. Very admirable.

There’s not a bad seat in the house in this smaller of Pacific Resident’s theatres, but I must advise future audiences, (which I hope everyone in SoCal will be,) that the air-conditioning in the very last row is a bit much. So, if you don’t love being cold, perhaps don’t sit in that location when you see the show. But it may be perfect in the summer!

Gaslight running through August 10, 2025
Pacific Resident Theatre 703 Venice Blvd. Venice
310-822-8392 www.pacificresidenttheatre.org