A Paranormal Activity West End debut is just around the corner as the Oren Peli written and directed horror movie that took the world by storm is getting a West End debut that was announced officially today.
Following its electrifying run at Leeds Playhouse last summer, Melting Pot today announces that the critically acclaimed stage adaptation of the Paranormal Activity films will haunt the West End this winter when it transfers to The Ambassadors Theatre for a 12-week season.
Written by playwright Levi Holloway the story revolves around James and Lou who move from Chicago to London to escape their past but as the franchise has taught us, it’s not the location that is haunted, it’s the people.
Inspired by the movie this is a brand new story live on stage as the stage show reimagines a modern ghost story with an unsettling intimacy of being located in a theatre and for me this is way more terrifying than watching it on screen.
I’ve seen some very tame adaptations of horror on stage and yet some-how they still have this tension that can’t be replicated on the big screen, I think seeing it with real people right before your very eyes makes it all the more terrifying, that build-up of creeping dread, unseen forces and tension certainly make for a seat-gripping good time!
Felix Barrett, known for breaking boundaries between audience and performer, brings his signature visionary style to the production. With innovative staging and chilling soundscapes, Paranormal Activity invites audiences to witness the inexplicable up close—and feel the fear in real time.
Praised for its inventive storytelling and terrifying atmosphere, the West End transfer promises to amplify the experience even further, making it a must-see event for thrill-seekers and theatre lovers alike.
Paranormal Activity will undertake a North American tour this autumn, visiting the Chicago Shakespeare Theatre; Center Theatre Group, Ahmanson Theatre, Los Angeles; Shakespeare Theatre Company, Washington DC and American Conservatory Theatre, San Francisco, ahead of opening in London this December.
Director Felix Barrett says of the West End transfer:
“I’m so thrilled that Paranormal will have a chance to ensnare and unnerve audiences in London later this year! From seeing the advertising campaign of the film twenty years ago, where you watched cinema audiences leap out of their chairs in horror, I have long wondered how you could recreate that visceral reaction in a theatre setting. How do you bring one of the most frightening films to life? How do you break the inherent safety that a plush West End theatre offers? It’s been an incredible challenge, and we cannot wait to see how London audiences respond!”
Playwright Levi Holloway continues:
“Collaborating with Felix Barrett to create an actual nightmare has been nothing short of a dream. Relishing in a shared language of dread, we’ve conspired to create something impossible, mixing the familiar with the uncanny, heart with horror. London audiences have a nose for honesty on stage and little patience for anything else. They’ll find it here, right alongside all the mischief we’ve made to trouble their sleep.”
It’s crazy to think that the original Paranormal Activity movie was released back in 2009, grossing nearly $200 million worldwide and kicking off a blockbuster franchise spanning seven feature films, how time flies! I remember going to see it in the cinemas and being genuinely petrified of every bump, crash and flutter that this film delivers.
It’s a tension ramping nightmare and I can’t even imagine how much more amplified that’s going to be on stage.
Bring it on!
