Review: A Prim Wife Serves a Fitting Recompense in DECEIVED at Moonstone Theatre Company

A wealthy woman living in 1901 Victorian England marries a devious man who is trying to convince her she is losing her mind. When Bella uncovers Jack’s scheme, she attempts to turn the tables on her devious spouse. The manipulative Jack and vengeful Bella machinate to gain the upper hand over each other.

Moonstone Theatre Company presents the St. Louis premiere of Johnna Wright and Patty Jamieson’s Deceived. Wright and Jamieson’s 2022 psychological thriller is an updated adaptation of Patrick Hamilton’s 1938 play Gas Light that was retitled as Angel Street for its Broadway run.

Directed by Sharon Hunter, Deceived stars local acting treasures Christina Yancy and Aaron Orion Baker as Bella and Jack.

Baker delivers a conniving, cold-hearted portrayal of a cunning, thieving swindler. His calculated, psychological games fool the naïve, but smart Bella. He has her questioning her sanity until she finds undeniable proof that she is not, in fact, delusional.

The reliably versatile Christina Yancy delivers a signature performance as the wearied Bella. Yancy embodies the duped mark who becomes a resentful, reprisal-minded reckoner. Her counter-manipulation is a witty game of cat and mouse.

The four-person cast includes subtle, reserved, yet dynamic portrayals from Cooper Shaw and Rhiannon Creighton as house servants Elizabeth and Nancy. Much like the servants from many British yarns, Shaw and Creighton are the mirrors to Bella’s kindhearted good and Jack’s greedy evil.

Hunter smartly uses the servant characters to reset the stage for upcoming scenes. The actors remove and arrange Katie Orr’s props under the guise of their housekeeping duties. But what Hunter is actually doing is buying her leads time for quick but extensive costume changes.

Costume Designer Teresa Doggett has constructed fanciful Victorian era wardrobes for Bella and Jack. Bella’s gowns are regally opulent. Doggett has selected luxurious, patterned, embroidered, brocade, and adorned fabrics for Bella’s highly structured looks and Jack’s princely vests and ascots. Both Yancy and Baker stun in their perfectly tailored elegant formal attire.

Elizabeth and Nancy wear in servant’s attire that befits their hierarchy in the home. Doggett created a conservative, fitted dark gown with keys at the waist for upper servant Elizabeth, while housekeeper/maid Nancy wears a black afternoon dress with a crisp white apron and a cotton mob cap atop Dennis Milam Bensie’s period appropriate wig designs.

Doggett’s and Bensie’s looks amount to what could be considered a collection for a Victorian fashion show. The costume heavy play created a massive wardrobe undertaking for Doggett, one of St. Louis’ finest theatrical costumers.

Yancy, Baker, Shaw, and Creighton adopt authentic sounding British accents that increase storytelling authenticity. Shaw pulls double-duty as dialect coach to ensure consistency in pacing, pronunciation, rhythm, and intonation among the four actors.

Scenic Designer Katherine Stepanek and painter Tobias Reynolds have constructed an elegant high-ceiling drawing room where the action takes place. Lighting Designers Eve Garty and Ethan Steimel adorn Stepanek’s Victorian parlour with hanging gas lamps that are central to Hunter’s story telling. Garty and Steimel’s dramatic illumination underscores key plot developments and becomes a critical narrative device, as does Amanda Were’s ambient sound design.

Wright and Jamieson’s slow-moving script is reminiscent of many works of British literature that have been adapted for stage and screen. The story, albeit somewhat predictable, is entertaining in the nuanced hands of the affecting Yancy and imposing Baker.

Deceived played its final performance on October 25, 2026. Moonstone’s next production, “Almost, Maine,” opens on December 10, 2026, at the Gaslight Theater. Visit moonstonetheatrecompnay.com for more information.

PHOTO CREDITS: Jon Gitchoff