Turn of the Screw, the third production in the university’s theater and dance season, finished its run this past Sunday.

The show, described as disturbing, psychological and horrific, held the audience’s attention from start to finish.

Out of the 346 audience members, 164 were SDSU students.

Turn of the Screw is a chilling play written by Jeffrey Hatcher based on Henry James’ gothic book. It tells the story of a young governess who has been sent to take care of two children in a remote country house. The Governess starts to believe that the children are influenced by ghosts with the play ending in a tragic outcome.

The director, Casey Paradies, had been wanting to do this show for a long time.

“I like scaring an audience and I am a big fan of classic novels and horror,” Paradies said, “This play contains both of those and is a challenge to the actors and director and designers as it has to be very minimal so that the audience can really delve into the scariest place, their own minds.”

Paradies directed his first show by himself in the fall of 2002. He joined the Theatre Directors Union, known as The Stage Directors and Choreographers Society in 2014 at the associate level.

He said the biggest challenge was to let the story be ambiguous and not put his own opinion on it.

“Are the ghosts real or is the governess having a mental breakdown? I am not allowed, in this piece, to take sides,” Paradies said, “So that was a huge challenge of keeping myself and the creative team out of that decision while letting the actors decide for themselves and play to that.”

When asked how the audience reacted to this horror story, Paradies said they went on a journey.

“They are visibly disturbed at the end and after they walk out into the real world again, they are able to breathe and talk about the experience,” Paradies said, “Audiences seem to be truly sharing the space as they cling together to face the horrors seen in the eyes of the governess.”

The finished product of this show is very special to Paradies.

Barbara Gonzalez, who played The Governess, said her and her character are both hopeless romantics and would do anything for the people they care about.

Gonzalez said the most challenging part of the production was going through the same emotional state that her character was going through for the first time.

“My favorite part of the show is when The Governess and Miles have their last conversation and we get to scream at each other. Even though it was an emotional moment, it was fun to find new things in it every night.”

Gonzalez said she had takeaways from this production.

“Always try to find something new in your character, and be open to trying new things, and get to know the people you’re gonna work with,” Gonzalez said. “I feel like getting to know Willelm made working together more comfortable for the both of us.”

Willem Lim, who played The Man, said the audience had many different reactions with gasps, scares, and laughs.

Lim said his favorite part of the show was watching everyone’s hard work pay off.

“From the set, to the lighting, to the performances, everyone worked so hard and it really really showed,” Lim said.

Lim said the most challenging part of the production was blocking out the movement.

“I had never performed in a ‘thrust’ theater before and it really bended my mind trying to get used to that, as opposed to a normal theater.”

A thrust theater is a type of theater where the stage is near the center of the room, and has audiences on all three sides.

Lim said his biggest takeaway from the production was that it is important to get to know the people that you are working with.

“I have never worked with Barbara before, and I barely even knew her before this, but getting to know her really amplified the performance. I think the care we had really showed on the stage.”

Grant Taylor, an audience member, said he loves horror stories.

“I think they are so unique and fascinating, and they portray experiences many people don’t have in real life. Or if they have the experience, it makes it all the more terrifying.”

Taylor enjoyed how the show left a lot to the imagination, and how it provoked the audience’s imagination.

“I loved the implication of ghosts and how the lighting design supported the suspenseful moments.”

State University Theatre and Dance has two more productions left for the year, Bright Star and the Spring Dance Concert: Be.