On the brink of his Edinburgh Fringe debut, Hamish Lloyd Barnes chats with Pepper&Salt about his show, Stage Presence, the history of William Terris and theatre ghosts.
How would you summarise your show?
Stage Presence is a multi character comedy show set in a haunted theatre on the night it gets demolished where I play all of the ghosts, from pouting leads to annoying musical theatre kids, as well as some of the objects… As the hour progresses, it is clear that all the stories are interlinked and the audience is able to uncover a wider mystery at the heart of the building’s past as the wrecking ball swings.
To those perhaps not familiar with the history, what happened to William Terris?
William Terriss was a very successful Victorian melodrama actor who was murdered by fellow actor Richard Prince at the Stage Door of the Adelphi Theatre before a show in 1897. His final words were “I’ll be back” and his ghost has subsequently been sighted numerous times around the theatre and the surrounding tube stations. When I heard this story, I found the idea of the ghost of an actor returning from the beyond for attention really funny – so the story became the inspiration for my show!
What are some of the cast of characters that audiences can expect to meet over the course of this show?
I play (currently) 10 different characters over the course of the show… Some crowd favourites from the work-in-progress performances include: the ghost of a leading man who is a sort of archetypal pouty British actor/nepobaby – part Hugh Grant part Prince Charming from Shrek, the ghost of his understudy who is a more awkward, ghoulish personality called Billy Buckles who I performed as at the final of the Leicester Square Sketch Off this year, and a ticket with a restricted view.
What was the inspiration behind this hour?
At the time of hearing about the William Terriss story I was training at Ecole Philippe Gaulier in France and had discovered this quite camp, eccentric, scary character in one of the modules that I wanted to do something with. As I read more about the story it became clear it might be something I could explore with the characterisation I’d found. Also, having been in the critically-panned Take That musical on the West End when I was 10, and doing various other shows as a child actor, I have always loved the West End and theatres, so it made sense as a backdrop for my first show.
What from your own performing experience has influenced or is made reference to in this hour?
Well, I play an annoying child actor in it so I have sort of been inspired by my younger self there! I think the show generally is a showcase of all the different styles of performance I love and have done. There are bits of clowning from my time training at Gaulier, bits of standup from the years I spent on the standup circuit, physical theatre from my time with the company I Co-run called Spies Like Us, the list goes on!
”As I’ve worked on the show I’ve realised lots of it is about memory: how we glamourise good memories and how we catastrophise tragedy and the dangers, and beauty, of living in anything other than the present.”
How would you personally define the term ‘stage presence’?
Well, primarily the title is a pun because the show is about theatre ghosts. But I would also say as I’ve worked on the show I’ve realised lots of it is about memory: how we glamourise good memories and how we catastrophise tragedy and the dangers, and beauty, of living in anything other than the present. Maybe my subconscious knew that when I named it originally, but I hadn’t worked it out.
What are you looking forward to the most about debuting?
I’m really excited to just share the show with as many people as possible and grow its audience. I’m also so looking forward to doing it every day and developing as a performer.
What are some of the parallels and differences that you explore between arts in the modern day and the arts in that of William Terris?
I think a lot of the fun I’ve had in the show is pointing at the parallels between the industry in the past and the present through the characters. There are so many parallels: from the arts being very elitist, to old actors going out with very young actresses. Also, as my characters are ghosts, it’s been really fun to play with the notion of them witnessing and getting to grips with modern phenomena. For example, my leading man character has watched Hamilton and, as a historical figure himself, decided to write his own rap musical about his life story.
Place your ghosts on a DND alignment chart.
Child actor: Chaotic Good. Anthony Ableforth (leading man): Chaotic Evil. Billy Buckles (Ghoulish understudy): Chaotic neutral. A lot of chaos…
Why is the historical building being demolished and is it contractors?
It’s being demolished to be turned into a Wholefoods following health and safety concerns after a serious case of asbestos was found in the dressing rooms and a child actor was squished by a falling spotlight.
If your character had a pre-show playlist, what songs would be on it?
Highway To Hell by ACDC, Ghost by Justin Bieber, and I Put A Spell On You by Screamin’ Jay Hawkins.
By Katerina Partolina Schwartz
Photo Credit: Rebecca Need-Menear
Pepper & Salt 
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