If there was ever a time for old-fashioned spoofy fun, it’s now. Your chance to goof off comes courtesy of Rep Stage’s joy-buzzery production of The 39 Steps, directed by Joseph W. Ritsch with an arched eye for the comic and absurd.
[adsanity_rotating align=”aligncenter” time=”10″ group_id=”1455″ /]
Playwright Patrick Barlow’s stylish and silly send-up of murder mysteries riffs on John Buchan’s novel and the 1935 Alfred Hitchcock classic (and there are also allusions to many other Hitchcock films), and features a cast of four playing multiple roles at the doff of a hat.
The comedy is of the screwball variety veined with a dash of dry British humor and the pacing is as brisk as a police chase. The madcap energy lags a bit here and there and the staccato rhythm ebbs in a few spots, but doesn’t impact the overall sporting fun of Rep Stage’s proction.
James Fouchard’s scenic design (enhanced by Conor Mulligan’s film noir lighting and Sarah O’Halloran’s Foley Artist-befitting sound design) is a marvel, a fond tribute to movie sets that uses almost every inch and level of the theater.
Keep your eyes peeled, because you never know where the nimble cast of four is going to pop up. The 39 Steps begins with debonair hero Richard Hannay (splendidly outfitted in velvet smoking jackets and Harris Tweed suits by costume designer Joan L. Mather), lounging in his armchair, drink and pipe in hand, prepared to relate how he solved the mystery of “The 39 Steps” and saved his bacon at the same time.
It all begins—where it ends—at a London music hall, where Hannay takes in a little light entertainment and winds up getting ensnared in international intrigue and smuggled secrets when a Teutonic vamp, Annabella Schmidt (Kathryn Tkel, rolling her vowels, pronounced “wowels,” with Marlena Dietrich savoir-faire), makes his acquaintance. Before you can say “Dashiell Hammett,” Hannay is trying to beat a murder rap and dashing all over Scotland to prove his innocence and find the real bad guys.
The 39 Steps from Rep Stage closes May 19, 2019. Details and tickets
There, he encounters all types, from the including a forbidding professor’s wife who bears a curious resemblance to Norman Bates’ mother (Noah Israel, full of inspired, deadpan buffoonery in this and other roles), a Scottish innkeeper in a kilt and gaudy holiday sweater (Michael Wood, astonishingly changeable and laugh-out-loud funny in a variety of parts), bumbling secret agents and coppers (Israel and Wood) and a dame he just can’t get out of his mind—and life (Tkel, a briskly no-nonsense charmer as love interest Pamela).
The show is a Hitchcockian hoot from start to finish, paying parodic homage to the master of suspense and the atmosphere and glamour of classic movies. Here’s looking at you, Rep Stage.
The 39 Steps Adapted by Patrick Barlow from the novel by John Buchan and the movie by Alfred Hitchcock . Director: Joseph W. Ritsch. Featuring: Robbie Gay, Noah Israel, Kathryn Tkel, Michael Wood . Scenic Design: James Fouchard. Costume Design: Joan L. Mather. Lighting Design: Conor Mulligan. Sound Design: Sarah O’Halloran. Properties Design: Jason Dearing. Dramaturg: Lisa A. Wilde. Vocal/Dialect Coach: Teresa Spencer. Intimacy and Fight Director: Jenny Male. Production Stage Manager: Josie R. Felt. Produced by Rep Stage . Reviewed by Jayne Blanchard.
I am look for a place to get the word out about 1st Saturday’s puppet lab at Rhizome DC. 10-12pm, all levels welcome, $5-10 at the door to cover use of space.This is a theatrical exploration for all those interested in the art of puppet performance.