As we arrived at St Pancras station, I get off the Eurostar and make my way to the front of the station. Considering I’m with my mother, sister and partner we decided to take a short cab ride to my mothers hotel and check her in before me and my partner headed to our hotel at The Shard. We only had an hour or two to get ready and rendezvous for the play we all agreed to watch: The Exorcist.
It’s a shame I didn’t stay in London more than 24 hours. I have a few friends in the area I would have loved to see. There are so many sites I would love to revisit. Walking around the streets of London gives you a real sense of history. You could see it in every cobblestone and old buildings. London is a great city to take in. It’s completely different from my home town of LA, which I love.
The Phoenix
I’ve only been to London one other time. Therefore, I have a lot of
ground to cover. The Phoenix theater is cute and petite. The neighborhood is called Covent Garden. The streets are small and the traffic is horrendous. Filled with people looking for a good time. These streets are bustling and brimming with activity.
The Phoenix Theater is tucked away on a corner. I almost missed it. The buildings in London, like other great cities around the world, are pushed together and neatly arranged. Sometimes, a building is wedged between two others and its easy to miss.
The theater itself is small but elaborately decorated. From the red carpet on the ground to the elaborate gold details on the walls. The theater is unique. Especially if you’re not a theater goer like myself, it made an impression.
The Exorcist
If you’re a horror movie lover like myself you probably know this movie like the back of your hand. Needless to say, I am excited to see this gory and amazingly scary movie turned into a show. As the show began the acting was not as great as it could have been. Even so, my excitement did not go away.
I wanted to see how they would create the effects portrayed in the movie. They used a projector to simulate Regans (the main character) vomit scene. It actually looks realistic because the light in the entire play is dim and dark. Therefore even though it’s a projection, the physics of it all looks realistic. I’m sure if the room was fully lit it wouldn’t look so good.
The storyline is different but just slightly. There is a token gay character. The dialogue, in some scenes is different.
The crucifixion masturbation scene is different too and so is the head spinning scene. However, I’m still wondering how they made her head spin. I get the feeling the actress’ wig is what spun around, but I’m not sure how they made it spin without someone doing it with their hands.
I thoroughly enjoyed the play. The message of the play is different than the movie. It’s more about religion and how perhaps religion isn’t the answer. Perhaps it may be… there is a sexual undertone as well. The devil that possess Regan does so in a very sexually seductive way. It’s creepy and effective.
At the end of the show the entire cast comes out and bows. This is how all plays end. You clap and show your appreciation for their performance.
Even though, I didn’t think the play was anywhere close to spectacular, I almost started to cry when the cast came out to bow. It isn’t about how amazing it may or may not be. It’s more about my love for horror movies and how beautiful it was to see others love this art form as much as I do. They love this movie so much they made it into a play for people to see and enjoy. It’s beautiful and its artistic. I appreciate it so much. I never thought I would see a horror movie turned into a play. It’s hard to put into words. But it was amazing and beautiful to see this come to life.
Let me break it down for you:
Should you watch it? Only if you’re a die-hard horror fan. Otherwise you might think it sucks.
$70 USD Per person
At the Phoenix Theater in Covent Gardens