Theater

A classic for a reason: At Northlight Theatre, new ‘Gaslight’ adaptation still thrills

Posted December 10, 2025 3:42 pm

Cheyenne Casebier plays Bella, whose husband, Jack (Lawrence Grimm), tries to drive her insane in Northlight Theatre's revival of “Gaslight,” adapted by Steven Dietz from Patrick Hamilton’s 1938 thriller. Courtesy of Michael Brosilow

“Gaslight” — 3.5 stars

A cringeworthy moment occurs early in Northlight Theatre’s highly entertaining “Gaslight,” the seminal psychological thriller set during the Victorian era about a husband attempting to drive his wife insane.

Sitting in a chair reserved especially for him in his upper middle-class New York City home, Jack Manningham (Lawrence Grimm) summons his wife, Bella (Cheyenne Casebier), with the promise of a surprise. She complies. Arranging herself on a footstool at his knee, Bella is a picture of submission, affection and trust.

That unsettling scene is one of several in Steven Dietz’s adaptation of Patrick Hamilton’s 1938 play, an examination of manipulation, betrayal and cruelty that Deitz described in the program notes as “the gold standard of stage thrillers.” Its popularity is undiminished. Glenview’s Oil Lamp Theater revived Hamilton’s script in October, following Theatre of Western Springs’ community theater production in September.

For those unfamiliar with the play’s legacy, “Gaslight” inspired the term “gaslighting,” which refers to psychological manipulation that causes a person to doubt his or her memories, reality and sanity.

Subtle menace underscores director Jessica Thebus’ taut, expertly acted production that’s carefully staged to balance tension and humor, including some stage business that borders on farcical. That said, Thebus and her actors exercise the restraint required to sustain the suspense the story demands.

Sgt. Rough (Timothy Edward Kane), center, informs Bella (Cheyenne Casebier), left, and her housekeeper Elizabeth (Kathy Scambiatterra) that Bella’s husband isn’t who he seems to be in Northlight Theatre’s production of the classic thriller “Gaslight.” Courtesy of Michael Brosilow

Much of the humor comes courtesy of Sgt. Rough, a droll, retired detective (Timothy Edward Kane, clearly relishing the role of catalyst and comic relief) who informs Bella her husband is not the man she thinks he is.

Grimm’s Jack supplies the menace. The actor’s plummy, upper-crust intonation and suave demeanor belie the callousness of this sugarcoated villain.

Casebier elicits both sympathy and admiration in her keen, nuanced performance of a terrorized woman who questions her faculties and fears for her freedom. Yet Casebier invests Bella with an inner strength, obvious to Rough (and to us), but which she is reluctant to fully acknowledge.

Bella (Cheyenne Casebier) turns the tables on her husband Jack (Lawrence Grimm) who’s been trying to drive her insane in Northlight Theatre's revival of “Gaslight,” adapted by Steven Dietz from Patrick Hamilton’s 1938 thriller. Courtesy of Michael Brosilow

Take the nicely ambiguous confrontation between Bella and Jack late in the second act. Astutely crafted by Dietz and staged by Thebus (with a hat tip to “Sweeney Todd”), it dramatizes abused person syndrome and the complex relationship survivors have with their abusers. I know how the story ends, and still Casebier kept me guessing. Kudos for that.

Rounding out the cast are Kathy Scambiatterra and Janyce Caraballo, both excellent. Scambiatterra plays loyal housekeeper Elizabeth and Caraballo plays Nancy, a saucy, calculating young maid (de rigueur in a Victorian-set drama).

Notable for the agency it provides female characters, Dietz’s adaptation casts Elizabeth and (eventually) Nancy as allies who understand better than Bella who Jack is.

Lawrence Grimm, left, plays the manipulative Jack Manningham and Janyce Caraballo plays Nancy, the housemaid who knows what he’s up to in Steve Dietz’s adaptation of the thriller “Gaslight” at Northlight Theatre. Courtesy of Michael Brosilow

Ultimately, “Gaslight” is the story of Bella’s empowerment sparked by Rough and nurtured by other women. Its culmination of her journey is brilliantly reflected in the production’s final moments, which my friend and peer Catey Sullivan compared to Nora’s door slam at the conclusion of Henrik Ibsen’s “A Doll’s House.”

Settling after an emotional evening, Bella — in a defining display of resilience and power — eschews the footstool and chooses the chair.

Lastly, Northlight designers deserve praise for this wonderfully moody production dominated by Collette Pollard’s impressive Victorian townhouse and featuring Raquel Adorno’s lovely period costumes and sound design by Andre Pluess that reflects Bella’s turmoil. Finally, there is JR Lederle’s all-important lighting. Encompassing not only the requisite dimming and flaring of chandeliers and sconces, but also looming shadows at the entrance to the Manningham home, it is the crucial detail in this classic tale.

• • •

Location: Northlight Theatre, North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie, (847) 673-6300, northlight.org

Showtimes: 1 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday; 7:30 p.m. Thursday and Friday; 2:30 and 7:30 p.m. Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. Sunday through Jan. 4. Also, 7:30 p.m. Dec. 16 and 23. No 7:30 p.m. show Dec. 24 and 25.

Tickets: $46-$98

Running time: About two hours, including intermission

Parking: In the lot adjacent to the theater

Rating: For teens and older