The West End hit, Bill Kenwright Productions’ stage adaptation of The Exorcist, is now at Theatre Royal Windsor ahead of a new UK-wide tour. Is this demonic tale as scary as ever? We’ve rounded up a selection of review highlights. Time to get booking!

Widely considered the scariest movie of all time, the film adaptation of William Peter Blatty‘s best-selling 1971 novel The Exorcist sparked unprecedented worldwide controversy when it was released in cinemas in 1973. William Friedkin’s screen masterpiece saw audiences petrified to the point of passing out. It went on to win two Academy Awards and became one of the top ten highest-grossing films of all time. Now, 45 years after its release, fans of the film and theatre alike get to experience a visually astounding, intelligent and thrilling theatrical experience.

Inspired by true events, The Exorcist centres on the strange symptoms of young Regan. When the medical profession fails to provide answers, Regan’s desperate mother Chris (Sophie Ward) turns to a local priest for help. But before Father Damien (Ben Caplan) can tackle what’s before him, he must overcome his own shaken beliefs and unite with exorcism expert Father Merrin (Paul Nicholas), as this fight is for more than just one girl’s soul…

Nicholas, Ward and Caplan star in director Sean Mathias‘ new touring production, along with Tristram Wymark, Stephen Billington, Patrick Toomey, Joseph Wilkins, Susannah Edgley, Jonathan Blakeley, and, making her professional debut as Regan, Eliza Capel.

Following its opening season at Windsor, The Exorcist will tour until 23 November 2019, visiting Glasgow, Wimbledon, Stoke, Milton Keynes, Birmingham, Manchester, Dublin, Edinburgh, Inverness and Aberdeen.

Review highlights

TheatreNews – ★★★★★

Matthew Lenton: “A thrilling evening at the Theatre Royal Windsor. Not just an exciting horror story: clever, thought-provoking and superbly staged. All the stops pulled out to build a sense of unease and brooding malevolence.”

theatre-news.com

Bucks Free Press

Stephen Hare: “Coupled with the rich use of special effects, there is no time to get bored during the 100-minute show… Special mention should go to Susannah Edgley and Tristram Wymark from both a horror and comic relief perspective.”

bucksfreepress.co.uk

Muddy Stilettos

“Cult viewing for fans of the horror genre… A tense, creepy watch that’ll have you longing for the safety of your own bed. A quality cast and technically brilliant staging make this a must-watch.”

berkshire.muddystilet…

Independent – ★★★★

Paul Taylor: “I mean it as a compliment when I say that this show is less scary than the film, but that it’s perhaps more profoundly disturbing… It offers the pleasure of experiencing a story that you love-to-dread told in another medium.”

independent.co.uk

Essential Surrey

Con Crowley: “Horror in the theatre adds another dimension… Flashes of light, darkness and clever set design and makeup made for some nervous moments.”

essentialsurrey.c…

Time Out

Andrzej Lukowski: “An undoubted technical triumph… Ian McKellen’s pre-recorded voiceover as the demon is genuinely sensational, with its seductive, even comforting tone, lightly tinged with fathoms-deep menace.”

timeout.com