The 39 Steps

Centaur Theatre /49th Season

THE 39 STEPS

November 14 - December 10, 2017

Directed by EDA HOLMES

Adapted by PATRICK BARLOW

Based on the ALFRED HITCHCOCK film adaptation of JOHN BUCHAN's novel

The play is a comic spin on a classic story made famous by Alfred Hitchcock's film with the same title.

Richard Hannay, a suspected murderer, is caught in a web of international conspiracy. Handcuffed to a beautiful woman who is convinced of his guilt, the unwitting action hero must stay one step ahead of Scotland Yard to prove his innocence and to stop an evil spy-ring. His and others' lives are endangered in this theatrical "mission impossible", full of action and allusions. The play is performed by only four actors, who most effectively switch characters at lightning speed.

Director Eda Holm's play is based on vaudeville and slapstick elements perfectly enacted by the four actors. If you like those genres, then the play will be to your liking. On the other hand, if you do not appreciate crude jokes, and do not find it funny to look under a woman's skirt, seeing her purposefully flashed panties, or watch a graphic reference to bestiality, than it might be better for you to find some other entertainment. Several ladies were overheard referring to some stage enactment as unacceptable, leaving the theatre at the intermission. Considering that the largest segment of the Centaur's audience is of a certain age, a more classy staging might have been more appropriate since classiness is never out of fashion, regardless of the audience's calendar years and the different age brackets and generations they belong to. I believe there could be created classiness in any theatre genre and that a classy interpretation gives any play more weight, reality, and audience's emotional engagement. Even if one laughs during this Centaur play, the question arises how deeply one gets engaged with it, and how meaningful is that experience. 

CREATIVE TEAM

ACTORS: Lucinda Davis, Trent Pardy, Amelia Sargisson, Andrew Shaver

Set & Costume Designer - Michael Gianfrancesco

Lighting Designer - Andrea Lundy

Composer & Sound Designer - Keith Thomas

Fight Choreographer - Anita Nittolly

Assistant Director - Cristina Cugliandro

Stage Manager - Merissa Tordjman

Assistant Stage Manager - Isabel Quintero Faia

For more information, visit the Centaur Theatre website.