Bunker Talk #160: Kelly Jones x Adam Z. Robinson

Stage Fright: Staging the Ghost Story

Ghost stories have long been associated with performance. Many of us have enjoyed the thrill of sharing the telling of spooky tales around the winter fireside, or the thrill of dressing up as a ghoul for Halloween. But what happens to the tales of the dead when they are brought to life in the theatre? Join host Brontë Schiltz (writer and academic), Adam Z. Robinson (writer, actor and theatre-maker), Dr Kelly Jones (academic and author of Staging the Ghost Story: Shadows in the Limelight) as they discuss the thrills and challenges of staging the ghost story. 

Dr Kelly Jones is Senior Lecturer in Drama at the University of Lincoln where she specialises in theatrical realisations of the supernatural and stage Gothic. Her most recent publication is Staging the Ghost Story: Shadows in the Limelight (Palgrave, 2025).

Adam Z. Robinson is a writer, theatre-maker and award-winning author of flash fiction. His theatre work includes: Upon the Stair (“Everyone needs to see this show” – ✭✭✭✭½ The Reviews Hub) and Smile Club (✭✭✭✭ – The Guardian) co-written with Andrea Heaton. His plays The Book of Darkness & Light and Shivers toured nationally between 2016-2019. As well as his original plays, Adam has adapted classic works for the stage: Nightmares (national tour 2024), Haunted (two national tours, 2023) and A Christmas Carol (national tours 2019-25; residencies London 2022, New Brunswick, Canada, 2023). Adam’s other writing includes: Conscientious (national tour 2014), Belle & Mary (a true crime play commissioned by The Dukes Lancaster) and Seaside Terror (national tours 2017-20) with OddDoll Theatre. His play, Unhomely, premiered at Leeds Playhouse in 2024 and is published, along with his other playtexts, with Playdead Press. Adam is the host of The Ghost Story Book Club podcast. www.adamzrobinson.com