|
The 39 Steps
Presented by:
Melbourne Theatre Company
Date Reviewed:
10th April, 2008
Venue:
The Playhouse at The Arts Centre
Reviewer:
Adam Rafferty – Theatre People Editor
L-R: Helen
Christinson, Tony Taylor, Marcus Graham, Grant Piro. Photo: Jeff
Busby
The Melbourne Theatre Company has made a delightfully fun choice in
importing Partrick Barlow’s adaptation of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1935
film, The 39 Steps. This extremely entertaining, farcical
romp is now in its second year on London’s West End and it’s not
hard to see why.
Playing loving homage to the film (itself an adaptation of John
Buchan’s 1915 novel – however Hitchcock’s plot diverts considerably
from the original text) and referencing many Hitchcock classics,
Barlow’s script stays true to the film’s plot and characters, but
adds a shrewdly comedic flavour to the story. With just four
players, an empty stage space (dressed to appear like an old-world
theatre stage) and a handful of props and furniture to recreate the
many settings and situations of the story, a humorous outcome is
bound to occur simply due to the amount of ‘doubling’ and scene
setting this requires from the cast. But Barlow has taken this
further into the heights of hilarity by overplaying the
stereotypical ‘terribly, terribly English’ stiff upper-lip and
melodrama of the films of that era. 
The plot concerns Richard Hannay, who while on visit to London
attends the theatre to see ‘Mr. Memory’, a man who can perform
astounding feats of recollection. Suddenly shots are fired and in
the resulting hubbub, he finds himself in the presence of Annabella
Smith, a dark and mysterious woman who convinces him to allow her to
seek refuge at his Portland Place flat. Once there she confides to
him that she is spy who has uncovered a plot to steal vital British
military secrets and now she is being hunted by assassins out to
stop her. That night she is stabbed in the back with Hannay’s bread
knife but she survives long enough to warn him to flee her pursuers.
Left looking the culprit and now determined to break the spy ring,
he sets off to Scotland to locate a man missing a top joint from his
pinkie finger!
Marcus Graham plays Hannay with matinee idol aplomb and is
thoroughly convincing as the dandy. Described as having “A rather
sweetly turned up nose and of course his very attractive pencil
moustache. His time on the moors has made him slightly more rugged
looking, which makes him look even better looking than he did
before.”, Graham carries off this description with requisite pleased
humility. Rarely off stage and conducting all his exploits in a
three-piece suit, Graham handles the comedy and physicality of this
role brilliantly.
The three roles of Annabella the spy, the crofter’s wife Margaret
and love-interest Pamela are played with wonderful comic
exaggeration by delightful MTC newcomer Helen Christinson. Her
wide-eyed innocence as Margaret and enigmatic intensity as Annabella
serve to highlight the contrasting self-righteousness of her Pamela,
and Christinson embodies the classic black & white era heroine
beautifully.
The remaining 135-odd roles are played by Grant Piro and Tony Taylor
in what can only be described as virtuoso performances. The pair are
truly remarkable in their ability to populate the story with a
cavalcade of comic characters encompassing a variety of accents,
sexes and ages – even displaying a wide variety of differing
Scottish brogues as Hannay travels the Highlands. It’s a sight to
behold when a group’ of these characters all begin to interact with
each other! And Piro’s Mr. Memory recitation of quite possibly the
most complicated monologue ever written is a feat unto itself.
Taylor, whose performance often has flavours of Blackadder’s
Baldrick, has many side-splitting moments but he hits the heights
with his inquisitive Scottish hotel-keeper’s wife. Really though,
it’s hard to pick out specific highlights for these two actors as it
is the marathon performances of the pair that make The 39 Steps
the thoroughly entertaining show it is. These guys are the true
stars of the show.
 With
West End Director Maria Aitken restaging the production here
(incorporating Toby Sedgwick’s brilliant movement plot) we have the
good fortune to experience the equivalent of travelling to London
for a night out at the theatre without having to endure a long and
expensive flight. By this time Aitken’s direction has reached a
polish that sets the pace and camber of the presentation at exactly
the right mark. Further recreating Peter McIntosh’s original set and
costume designs is a wise move as they could hardly be improved upon
and, certainly in the case of the set, are an integral part of the
show’s concept. And the concept, by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon is
a brilliant one. The use of shadow play, fog, lighting effects and
the ingenious setting of a limited amount of furniture and props,
transports the viewer to the innumerable locations of the story and
adds a new quirky delight at every turn.
Fans of Hitchcock receive special treats throughout the night, as
little salutes to the great man and his work are dotted throughout
the piece, but no familiarity with either the film or the book is
required to understand or enjoy this charming adaptation. It’s
rarely that I ever feel a play is ‘cute’ but that is certainly the
case with this sweet little show. There’s something in the
affectionate ribbing of 1930s English film performances that makes
the humour of this piece special, and when combined with the
powerhouse performances of this cast, you’d be hard pressed to find
a more enjoyable night out right now.
|