The play, by the late Charles Ludlam, is a spoof that takes on our love of old black and white movies. It was created in the form of high camp, and takes on such films as Rebecca, Wuthering Heights, Gas Light, The Mummy's Curse, and a host of other gothic romances. Ludlam obviously had fun creating his play, and Theatre Aquarius caught its spirt to perfection.

Let me begin with the excellent sets by Douglas Paraschuk. The play opens and closes with the drawing room of the manor house of Manadacrest (does that remind you of Manderley?). It is a moody set, yet it is not difficult to catch the sense of humour that Paraschuk built into it to remind us that this is gothic romance territory. In the second act, the story takes us to Egypt, and again there is wonderfully playful humour in the opening scene. We are now in the Egypt of pyramids and palm trees, which loom in the background. If you let your eyes wander upward, you will see a postage stamp and instantly you will have trouble not to chuckle. It's such a delightfully funny parody of our fanciful image of that country. We are also taken inside an ancient tomb, with mummy case and all. What happens in the tomb I won't tell, because that would spoil the fun of discovery for you.

Mandacrest is the home of Lord Edgar Hillcrest, an Egyptologist. He has recently come back from abroad with a new bride, Lady Enid, who used to be an actress. She has to live with the haunting memory of the former mistress of the house, Irma, kept alive by the household's two servants, Nicodemus Underwood and housekeeper Jane Twisden (very much a Mrs. Danvers, if you can remember her)

All in all there are eight characters in the play, yet there are only two actors to play the parts. It takes acting know-how and courage to take on these roles, and a very good sense of humour and comic timing, as well as speed. Kevin Bundy and Blair Williams carry the whole thing off perfectly, aided by the outstandingly designed costumes by Tamara Marie Kucheran. Let me just say that there are events taking place in this play that must be seen to be believed.

Director Stewart Arnott kept a tight reign on his two actors to prevent the whole thing to degenerate into slapstick. Yet, he has allowed the duo enough space to develop their characters to the fullest of their comic possibilities. That Bundy and Blair are able to play the whole thing straight-faced (most of the time), and that they are able to switch back and forth within seconds between the speech patterns and accents of their male and female characters, marks them as top-notch performers.