There’s something wonderfully refreshing about stepping into a theater in December and not being greeted by tinsel, toy soldiers, or another round of holiday cheer. Don’t get me wrong, I love a festive musical as much as anyone, but sometimes you need a break from the glitter, a chance to let your mind wander someplace deeper, darker, and more complex. Deceived at the Everyman Theatre offers exactly that escape. Adapted from the gripping psychological thriller Gaslight by Patrick Hamilton, the production delivers an atmosphere so tense and elegantly crafted that it draws you in with quiet hands and refuses to release you until long after the final bow.
The story unfolds in the sitting room of a middle-class London home in 1901, and scenic designer Daniel Ettinger has created a space that feels stunningly lived-in, layered, and evocative. The room is warm on the surface — rich wood tones, carefully chosen upholstery, soft lighting — but beneath that warmth lies a subtle chill. The shadows cling to corners a little too tightly, and the air feels thick with unspoken tensions. It’s the kind of environment where you sense that every object might hold a memory, every doorway might hide a secret, and every silence stretches just a heartbeat too long. Ettinger’s work doesn’t just set the scene; it builds the emotional architecture of the entire play.
In this space, small things begin to go missing. Items are put away only to reappear somewhere unexpected. Pictures vanish without explanation. Loud, unexplained noises echo from parts of the house no one admits to entering. And then there are the gaslights, dimming for no clear reason only to flare bright again, casting shifting shadows that seem to move of their own accord. These disruptions may appear insignificant at first, but together they accumulate with a chilling steadiness, creating an atmosphere where reality itself feels unstable. The production never tells you what to think; instead, it invites you to inhabit that uncertainty right alongside Bella, questioning every sound, every shadow, and every seemingly harmless change in the room.
Director Vincent M. Lancisi takes this atmosphere and shapes it into something quietly devastating. His direction is deliberate in the best possible way — never slow, never rushed, but paced with an almost surgical precision. Lansi understands that the real power of this story doesn’t lie in explosive moments but in the subtle unraveling of certainty. He lets the tension grow slowly, allowing doubt to seep into the room, allowing the audience to feel the creeping unease long before any character dares to name it. Under his guidance, the production becomes a study in psychological erosion, handled with intelligence, restraint, and emotional clarity.
Katie Kleiger’s Bella, the timid and caring wife who is slowly driven to believe she is losing her mind, is profoundly affecting. She plays Bella with fragile intensity, never overdone, never melodramatic. Instead, Kleiger allows uncertainty to unfold in small gestures: the tremor in her voice when she questions herself, the way her eyes move as though searching the room for answers she can’t articulate, the hesitation in her movements as if even her own instincts have become untrustworthy. Watching her struggle to grasp reality is heartbreaking in a very human way. Everyone, at some point, has felt the ground shift beneath their feet. Kleiger captures that feeling with delicate precision.
Deborah Hazlett portrays Elizabeth, the head housekeeper. She provides a grounded, steady counterpoint to Bella’s unraveling. Hazlett brings an inner strength and an intuitive calm to the role. There’s a moment where Elizabeth simply observes the room, and without saying a word, you can sense her mind clicking through the pieces, noticing the emotional shifts, the odd tensions, the quiet imbalances. Hazlett excels at portraying women who see more than they let on, and here, that skill adds an essential layer of warmth and wisdom to the unfolding drama.
Zach Powell’s Jack, the mysterious husband who spends his nights everywhere but home, is unsettlingly charming — exactly the kind of charm that puts you on edge because it feels too polished, too deliberate. Powell plays him with a controlled ease: a smile that lands just a beat too late, a softness in his voice that doesn’t quite match the steel behind his eyes. He walks the line between caring and manipulative with an unnerving grace, keeping the audience constantly questioning his motives. Powell’s performance holds a mirror to the play’s themes — how trust can be weaponized, how affection can morph into something dangerous.
Then we come to Em Whitworth’s Nancy, the new temptress of a maid, who injects the household with a sly, provocative energy. Whitworth plays Nancy as a saucy tart with her own agenda, a young woman who knows exactly how she’s perceived and leans into it with relish. There’s mischief in her smirk, calculation in her gaze, and an unspoken understanding that she’s navigating household politics with sharp, deliberate steps. Nancy isn’t just a servant drifting around the edges; she’s observant, opportunistic, and more entangled in the drama than she ever pretends to be. Whitworth’s performance adds a tantalizing spark to the tension, making the room feel even more charged.
What makes Deceived so compelling is its willingness to let the audience sit in uncertainty. It’s not afraid of silence or stillness. It trusts viewers to feel the tension, to lean into the discomfort, to experience the creeping dread that something here is deeply wrong. And because the production takes its time, the unraveling becomes even more powerful and almost cathartic. When clarity finally cracks through, it lands with emotional force.
In a season overflowing with carols, snowflakes, and endless holiday cheer, Deceived feels like an unexpected and deeply welcome gift. It’s a reminder that theater can thrill without spectacle, that it can shake you gently rather than shout, and that sometimes the most meaningful stories are the ones that linger quietly in the mind long after the lights come up.Everyman Theatre has crafted a stunning, intimate, emotionally charged production that stands out in a crowded season. Deceived may not sparkle with holiday magic, but it offers something far more valuable: a story that grips your heart, stirs your thoughts, and stays with you long after you’ve stepped back into the festive world outside.
Running Time: Two hours and 20 minutes plus one intermission.
Deceived plays through January 4, 2026, at Everyman Theatre, 315 West Fayette Street, Baltimore, MD. For tickets ($58–$90, with student discounts and Pay-What-You-Choose tickets at every performance), call the box office at (410) 752-2208 (Monday-Friday, 10 am to 4 pm and Saturday 12 to 4 pm), email boxoffice@everymantheatre.org, or purchase them online.
Cast and creative credits are online here.
Deceived
Based on the play Gaslight by Patrick Hamilton
Adapted by Johnna Wright and Patty Jamieson
Directed by Vincent M. Lancisi
CAST
Deborah Hazlett: Elizabeth
Katie Kleiger: Bella
Zack Powell: Jack
Em Whitworth: Nancy
CREATIVES DESIGN TEAM
Daniel Ettinger: Scenic Designer
David Burdick: Costume Design
Harold F. Burgess II: Lighting Design
Sun Hee Kil: Sound Design
Denise O’Brien: Wig Design
Gary Logan: Dialects
Lewis Shaw: Fights & Intimacy
Cat Wallis: Stage Manager
