New Jersey Stage Issue 62 | Page 34

father is off fighting in some un- named conflict. It’s the beginning of the industrial revolution and the valleys of Snowdonia are being torn apart to make way for slate quarries. Unfortunately for Gwen and Elen, their farm is slap bang in the middle of the site where the local slate baron intends digging out his next quarry. A financial of- fer has been made, but Elen refus- es to leave the family home. At night, Gwen is disturbed by strange noises, and the following day the women return from church to find a sheep’s heart nailed to their front door. The next morning they wake to find their sheep have all been slaughtered. Gwen notes this as ominous, as their neigh- bors’ sheep were mysteriously massacred in similar fashion just before their farm was burnt down. Does the same fate await Gwen and her family? Are the baron’s men behind such intimidation or is a more unnatural force at play? Elements of folk-horror - a sub- genre undergoing a recent revival with the likes of The Witch and Watch the trailer for Gwen NJ STAGE - ISSUE 62 INDEX NEXT ARTICLE 34