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Starring:
Catherine McCormack, Rupert Degas, Charles Edwards, Simon Gregor
Producer:
Edward Snape for Fiery Angel Ltd/Tricycle Theatre
Writer:
John Buchan, adapted by Patrick Barlow
After a sensational sell-out run at the Tricycle Theatre, John Buchan's gripping whodunnit, with four actors playing a minimum of 139 roles, is an astonishing theatrical tour de force.
The 'unstageable' thriller is staged, with every memorable scene from Hitchcock's 1935 film: the chase on the Flying Scotsman, the escape on the Forth Bridge, the death defying finale at the London Palladium and the first theatrical bi-plane crash!
Reproducing an action-filled adventure film for the stage is a daunting task for anyone, but Patrick Barlow’s comical adaptation of John Buchan's The 39 Steps fits the bill with its fast pace, four-person cast and knowing comical nods to the theatre's limits.
Laugh-out-loud comic set pieces and thrilling edge-of-your-seat adventure make this one for fun-lovers and film-goers alike.
Richard Hannay is accused of a murder he didn't commit (of Catherine McCormack's femme fatale, Annabella Schmidt) and subsequently goes on the run from a German spy ring – the eponymous organisation, the '39 Steps' – to Scotland, all the while trying to clear his name. Along the way he encounters myriad characters, including a cheeky milkman, an eccentric couple who live on a remote Scottish farm, lingerie salesmen, detectives, cops, Scottish dancers, a mumbling election chairman, a sinister German professor and an icy blonde, to name but a few.
The narrative is told at breakneck speed. Rupert Degas and Simon Gregor play the majority of characters – an astounding 146 in total – and deftly handle the task, with lightning-quick changes of accents, costume and props.
Special mention must also go to Director Maria Aitken and Movement Director Toby Sedgwick for staging the near-impossible feats of a chase across the top of a moving train, a bi-plane crash, a frantic pursuit across the foggy moors of Scotland and the scaling of the Forth Bridge; all handled by the actors without the help of fancy props and technology.
Of the three film versions of John Buchan's classic novel, Alfred Hitchcock's 1935 offering is considered the best. Barlow's adaptation (based on an original concept by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon) is most faithful to Hitchcock's version, and the actors make it their own at the Criterion.
The Olivier Award-winning Best New Comedy and critically acclaimed production stars Rachel Pickup, Simon Gregor, Robert Portal as Richard Hannay and Jimmy Chisholm as Clown.
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Press Quotes
"Clever, imaginative and brilliantly acted" Guardian, "A Joyouse version of the Hitchcock classic" Sunday Times, "Very funny... you can't help but be swept along"- Time Out, "Enormously enjoyable... a wonderful triumph of theatre" - BBC Radio 4
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