The 39 Steps

The Adelaide University Theatre Guild have out-Hitchcocked Hitchcock himself in their latest production of The 39 Steps, with many clever references to the master filmmaker’s films woven into the script and the set.

The 39 Steps is a parody adapted from the 1915 novel by John Buchan and the 1935 film by Alfred Hitchcock. The original concept and production of a four-actor version of the story was written by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon, and premiered in 1996. Patrick Barlow rewrote this adaptation in 2005.

The 2005 concept calls for the entirety of the 1935 adventure film to be performed with a cast of only four. One actor plays the hero, Richard Hannay, an actress plays the three women with whom he has romantic entanglements; and two other actors play every other character in the show, each occasionally playing multiple characters at once.

The play tells the story of a young man (Richard Hannay) who does his best to serve his country while caught up in intrigues beyond his control.

Director Mark Wickett’s production rightly focusses on the acting abilities of his cast and keeps the pace racing from beginning to end. The base set design by Wickett and Shelley Hampton is simple, a black box with a mezzanine featuring the foley desk. What brings the set to life are the set pieces – a picture frame becomes a window or a stile - six blocks become a bed, seats, a train carriage, or the top of a train , a lectern, a car and a cupboard– a suitcase opens to become a roaring fire – a long length of white sheer material becomes water or swirling mist.

The set is complemented clever costuming by Shelley Hampton and Emily Dalziel– a police hat that reverses to become the station master and aeroplane wings strapped to an actor to become a plane. Jackets change rapidly (especially in the train scene which also features several of the characters running on top of the train), wigs come and go, and hats aplenty that give the characters identity.

Stephen Dean’s lighting (operated by Jenny Allan) is simple, highlighting the action with some clever touches, particularly the lights mounted on the mezzanine. It is just enough, as the acting speaks for itself.

Special praise needs to go to Angela Short’s sound design and foley work which added a radio-play feel and comic highlights to the action.

There are not enough superlatives to describe Thomas Midena’s performance as Richard Hannay! His accent is impeccable as is his physicality. He inhabits Hannay’s every emotion and is the perfect central character. I particularly enjoyed his bedroom scene, handcuffed to the potential love of his life which made getting over and under a stile hysterically funny.

Imogen Deller-Evans slips in and out of her 3 characters (Pamela, Annabella and Margaret) with ease. Her on and off relationship (with those ‘magic’ moments punctuated with sound effects) is well played. Even though we the audience know that she will end up with Hannay, she leaves us in doubt at times.

Maxwell Whigham exudes energy as one of the two clowns. Well known for his character portrayals in Adelaide theatre, he literally changes character at the drop of a hat, not to mention coat, tie and even Christmas tree costume. His Scottish wife is a hoot with more than a casual resemblance to Mrs Doubtfire!

Emily Branford gives a stellar performance in her many characters as the other clown. Playing more male characters than female, she is able to contort her face to bring a wide variety of characters to life. Her physicality and comic timing are amazing. I particularly enjoyed her Scottish husband and Mr Memory.

Watch out for the Hitchcock references throughout the play. I will not reveal them all here, but my favourites are the practical  Rear Window, the shower curtain dress (a reminder of Psycho) and the picture of The Birds hanging in one of the houses. There are many more for the canny audience member. Even the director makes a brief cameo appearance as a sheep in true Hitchcock fashion.

The 39 Steps is a mixture of Alfred Hitchcock, Monty Python with just a touch of Mrs Doubtfire and makes for a highly entertaining night whether you are a fan of Hitchcock films or not. It is a lesson in character acting and more fun than a Barrel of Monkeys (if you can remember that far back)!

Barry Hill OAM

Photographer: Nat Kelly