Review: THE 39 STEPS, Richmond Theatre - Tour

Photo credit: Mark Senior

It is wonderful to see the return of another UK tour of The 39 Steps, which played so successfully at London’s Criterion Theatre from 2006-2015, and to be reminded of its inventive zany style of storytelling which makes a virtue of having only four cast members playing a multitude of characters, often simultaneously.

This production is the creation of Patrick Barlow and is loosely based on the Alfred Hitchcock 1935 film version, itself inspired by John Buchan’s 1915 novel, which created the stiff upper lip action hero, Richard Hannay. It draws from many other sources too in developing its style. There is a touch of Morecambe and Wise’s The Play What I Wrote and a hint of Tommy Cooper’s famous routine when he doubles up as two characters or uses multiple hats in telling a tale. The style itself has spawned similar productions with Mischief Theatre’s various comedies that delight in the theatricality of the staging and more recently, the Operation Mincemeat musical.

This revival, which enjoyed a gala night celebration at the Richmond Theatre, sits comfortably under the glorious Frank Matcham proscenium arch with its inspiring motto: “to wake the soul by tender strokes of art”. This implies a subtlety and emotional engagement in the production, but this is not the style of this show. It is a full-on parody of the thriller genre, packed with hammy characterisations, amusing visual gags and plenty of cross dressing. It creates its own storytelling visual language, revels in its theatricality and simplicity of the staging, and moves slickly through the multiple locations and characters. It sweeps the audience along with a joyous sense of fun and silliness that is hard to resist .

For those who don’t know the story, it follows Richard Hannay, a well-off Edwardian toff who is framed and pursued for the murder of a femme fatale at his London flat and then finds himself embroiled in the mystery of the 39 steps, a complex German prewar spy ring. The chase that follows heads for Scotland before returning to London for the final dramatic revelation.

There are several wonderful set piece creations using minimal props to stage the action highlights such as the train journey to Scotland, clambering across the Forth Bridge, the chases across the Scottish moors and the journey by car with two fake policemen. There is a lovely use of shadow puppetry for a plane chase sequence, in which the silhouette of Alfred Hitchcock appears as an extra as he did in all his films, and then another nod to his work with a Psycho style shower scene. There is clever physical business with windows and doors and an amusing repeated representation of wind blowing through coats, hats and hair accompanied by dramatic musical underscore. Indeed, the underlying music and sound effects give this production a filmic feel despite is obvious staginess.

Tom Byrne plays Richard Hannay with a straight bat, a stiff upper lip with a pencil moustache, and a declamatory voice as if unaware of mad cap clowning going on around him. He steps through the stage furniture as if it was perfectly normal and anchors the story telling from his opening conversational prologue to his ultimate happy ending. Opposite him, Safeena Ladha glides seductively through the narrative, firstly as Annabella, the murder victim, then Pamela, the young woman who finds herself caught up in covering up his escape, and then Margaret, the young crofter’s wife who helps him escape the police again. Three very different characters but each seem strangely drawn to Hannay.

The rest of the characters are played by the two clowns, Eugene McCoy and Maddie Rice, with an outrageous array of accents, a multitude of hats and outrageous cross dressing to enable the four-hander to move smoothly and rapidly forwards. Everything is played hard for mad cap over-the-top laughs, and with an energy and a knowing sense of how ludicrous some of it is. It is the charm of the production but occasionally you wish the director had asked them to tone it down a bit, slow the pace or speak a little more clearly. Their energetic performances rush the audience from scene to scene with barely time to reflect on each glorious stagey visual gag.

This is a modern classic production with its inventive theatrical style bringing a classic novel to the stage for a silly but entertaining evening. You do wonder what John Buchan or Alfred Hitchcock would have made of the parody of their work or even whether if Frank Matcham had known what was to come under his Proscenium arch, he might have changed the motto to “To crack a smile by a mighty sledgehammer of comedy”. Definitely worth catching on tour if you have never seen this production before or perhaps renewing the acquaintance with an old friend.

**** Four stars

Reviewed by: Nick Wayne

The 39 Steps plays at Richmond Theatre until 6 April before continuing its tour. To book tickets for select touring venues, please click here.