A NEW storytelling experience designed to evoke a hint of festive fear, is set to premiere at the Theatre Royal in Dumfries – just in time for Christmas.
Award-winning storytellers and ghost and history tour group Mostly Ghostly are excited to be presenting Dark Tales for Winter Nights on Wednesday December 18.
It’s described as ‘a portmanteau of super-spooky tales’ and audiences are promised some truly spine-tingling stories.
Mostly Ghostly founder Kathleen Cronie said: “Our tales have been hand picked to awaken that delicious thrill of fear, transporting guests on an uncanny journey through the haunting landscapes of Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Borders, where the darkness feels almost omnipresent and eldritch beings draw closer.”
Explaining why winter, and more specifically Christmastime, brings out the desire to experience a ghostly tale, Kathleen added: “Winter: the season of frosty sparkle and nose-nipping cold, creates the perfect environment for a ghost story, especially as we enter the festive period and thoughts of snow, cosy gatherings and roaring fires stir our senses. “During the endless dark nights, there’s an intrinsic part of us that longs to experience a haunting or cautionary tale, in friendly company, as people have done so across the ages; a form of eerie entertainment to stave off the cold. There is a long held tradition at Christmastime for stories of the uncanny, deeply rooted in the ancient celebrations surrounding the winter solstice, which falls just three days after our event.”
She hopes their production, which delves into the south of Scotland’s dark supernatural past, will help connect people to legends, folklore and most importantly, each other.
From the tragic story of a young girl lost in the snow near Wanlockhead, to accounts of wraiths, fairies and a ‘ghost house’, audiences will be drawn into an otherworldly realm, where the veil feels distinctly thinner.
“We’ve collected lots of weird and wonderful tales over the years and there’s one really eerie story from Portpatrick about a man who finds himself at the mercy of a mysterious woman and her unwanted affections. Essentially, she’s stalking him; but is she from this world or the next? You could say it’s love at first bite!” concluded Kathleen.
