![[CREDIT: Cat Laine] In GAMM's production of 'Ghosts,' Regina, played by Jackie Scholl, and her hard-working father Jacob, played by Kelby T. Akin discuss their future.](https://warwickpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/GAMM-Ghosts-1.jpg)
![[CREDIT: Cat Laine] In GAMM's production of 'Ghosts,' <br />Oswald, played Liam Roberts and Helen, played by Jeanine Kane reunite to dedicate an orphanage to Oswald's father.](https://warwickpost.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/GAMM-Ghosts-8-334x500.jpg)
Oswald, played Liam Roberts and Helen, played by Jeanine Kane reunite to dedicate an orphanage to Oswald’s father.
Director Tony Estrella, who also adapted Ibsen’s play, has crafted a spellbinding theater drama about human frailty and the fragility of the soul. This isn’t a tale of the supernatural. The “ghosts” here are metaphorical, not literal.
Jeanine Kane (“Angels in America”), a veteran of several Gamm productions, is in top form as Helen Alving, a widow living a desolate existence in a town in Norway, circa 1881.
Helen’s son Oswald (Liam Roberts) has returned from an extended stay in Paris to help his mother dedicate a new orphanage to his late father. Helen banished Oswald from the house so he could attend boarding school. Her need to protect her son from the truth has resulted in Oswald falling into a decadent lifestyle.
It turns out Captain Alving engaged in several extramarital trysts and has sired a daughter, Regina (beautifully played by newcomer Jackie Scholl), Helen’s longtime maid.
Oswald soon develops an infatuation with Regina, unaware she is his half-sister.
Helen confides in a local clergyman, Pastor Manders (Jim O’Brien) and shares the tales of her husband’s numerous affairs. Manders condemns her for walking out on her husband so soon after their wedding. Helen justifies her actions by claiming the right of self-preservation. There’s an interesting dynamic between the two, which I will not spoil.
Manders speaks quite often about duty and obedience to God as stated in Catholic doctrine. Helen reminds him that people are only human and they express their desires whether God likes it or not. She is deeply cynical about religion and makes several pointed observations.
Secrets haunt the drama in ‘Ghosts’
Eventually, truths are revealed and Helen faces the consequences of holding on to her secrets.
The storytelling here is absolutely first-rate, featuring textured characterizations and ruminations about religious faith and events from the past impacting the lives of those living now.
O’Brien (“Hamlet”) is also in top form as the pastor with moral failings. Manders has been holding back on his desires and proves to be no more saintly than the people he preaches to in his church.
Kelby T. Akin (“Twelfth Night”) rounds out the ensemble as Jacob, Regina’s hard-working father. Jacob has a bum leg and shambles about looking for validation.
Akin has a magnetic physical presence and is darkly funny as a lower class member of society.
Michael McGarty’s elegant set design features monochromatic colors and elongated stage, which creates a sense of intimacy between the audience and the characters.
Jeff Adelberg’s lighting effectively serves the grimness of the story.
The closing moments of “Ghosts” are absolutely gut-wrenching, in part due to the work of Kane and Roberts. The two actors make us feel the anguish of an unthinkable situation.
It seems there are some ghosts which will never really go away, no matter how hard we try to forget them.
Ghosts runs through March 22. The Gamm Theatre. 1245 Jefferson Boulevard, Warwick, RI. Runtime is 2 hours, 15 minutes with intermission. For tickets, call 401-723-4266 or visit gammtheatre.org
Author: Joe Siegel
Joe Siegel is a regular contributing writer for WarwickPost.com. His reporting has appeared in The Sun Chronicle in Attleboro and EDGE.
This is a test
