The 39 Steps- "... Pymble Players at their very best".

Theatre requires the suspension of disbelief of an audience, a willingness of the audience to accept a play as reality in order to enjoy it. Patrick Barlow’s The 39 Steps completely turns that notion on its head. The play, an incredibly loose adaptation of Alfred Hitchcock’s incredibly loose film adaptation of John Buchan’s novel, quite happily breaks the fourth wall at every opportunity possible. The results are rather delightful.

Director David Allsopp, aided by assistant director Courtney Farrow, has assembled a cracker of a team. With four actors playing 139 characters and a fairly minimal set design, the success of the play hinges on the chemistry of the cast and their commitment to the bit. The play is a constant swirl of action and characters and chaos that somehow manages to walk a tightrope of being a slapstick comedy and spy thriller.

Leading the cast is Daniel Ferris as Richard Hannay. Ferris’ Hannay is arrogant yet amiable, the straight man to the mayhem surrounding him…...Cassandra Gorman pushes the plot along in her roles as Annabella, Margaret and Pamela….. Faith Jessel and Mitch Doran provide… pure pandemonium. Jessel and Doran bounce off one another with ease, quickly changing costumes, accents, and occasionally gender.

Published 5 November 2024 by The Fourth Wall