By Peter Kemp
The Basin theatre production of The 39 Steps
Mix a Hitchcock masterpiece with a juicy spy novel, add a dash of Monty Python and you have The 39 Steps – a fast paced whodunnit.
In The 39 Steps, a man with a boring life meets a woman with a thick accent who says she’s a spy. He takes her home, and she is murdered. Soon after, a mysterious organisation called The 39 Steps is hot on the man’s trail in a nationwide manhunt that climaxes in a death-defying finale.
The Basin Theatre gave its audience one of the most hilarious evenings seen for a long time.
The sets were basic and interchangeable. Using chairs and tables which represented cars, trains and hotel rooms.
The cast were excellent and hilarious. We had the bored man Richard Hannay played by Michael Jewell and Michael was also co-director.
As a performer, he was outstanding, playing one character always on the ruin with nobody believing his story. Jewell gave the funniest performance seen for an age. An excellent portrayal.
The only lady in the cast was Bryony Wilson, who played various roles from that of the murdered spy with the thick accent to the wife of a Scottish hotel keeper, the local girl who did not believe Richard’s story which led to some hilarious scenes A superb performance and a wonderful change of accents depending on which character she was playing.
John Latham and Ozzy Breen-Carr are listed on the program as Clown one and two.
Bothe were extremely good and their scenes were excellent. They played crooks, policemen, Latham as a housewife married to the villain. An excellent portrayal and hilariously funny.
Breen-Carr was respectively a policeman, a crook, Mr Memory .Audiences may not believe how hard it is for an actor to change characters during a play but the four actors in this play lived up to all expectations giving excellent and superb performances particular in changing characters. Mishel Jewell was lucky he played the same character throughout but as said earlier was the co-director.
The Basin Theatre produced not only an excellent evening of theatre but an hilarious evening
of fun fully appreciated by the opening night audience.
A reminder:
The 1812 theatre – Of Mice and Men Season: October 5 – 28.
The Basin Theatre – Belles Season: October 5 – 15.
