Aug 233 min read

Review: The 39 Steps (Trafalgar Theatre)

Review by Rosie Holmes

⭐️⭐️⭐️

It’s been nine years since The 39 Steps was last seen in the West End, but now it’s back, taking up residency at the Trafalgar Theatre. Having previously enjoyed huge success and popularity, winning Olivier awards and Tony awards, the show has played to more than three million people across the world in the very satisfying 39(!) countries it has played. Adapted from the 1930s spy thriller by Alfred Hitchcock, my expectations were high, and I was keen to see if this classic show could still thrill and delight audiences.

A classic comedy caper, The 39 Steps tells the story of middle-class Englishman Richard Hannay – a bored civilian who is drawn into a world of espionage after a visit to a West End show no less. Hannay is wrongly accused of murder and spends the next two hours fleeing across Scotland evading the Police and a gang of international spies. Much of the fun and humour comes from the impressive nature with which the cast of four deftly portray 130 characters between them, from German spies, to Scottish farmers, and dazzling love interests.

Where the show can at times fall short on plot, it makes up for it in slapstick – a technique it favours throughout. For the most part, its funny (if not high-tech) and inventive uses of the stage are all at once silly and charming. A manhunt across the Scottish moors is portrayed with shadow puppets and actors flapping their coats to create a wind effect, and 4 chairs quickly become a car. The show retains charm, as it feels throughout that we as the audience are in on the joke with the fourth wall often broken as actors lightly rib the shows budget or even themselves.

The cast are certainly the stars of the show, throwing themselves into their multi-role performances with vigour. Tom Byrne is the protagonist, with a devilishly handsome pencil moustache and a stiff upper lip. He is funny, awkward and possesses genuine chemistry with his love interest – hard to do when stepping through bogs. I also couldn’t help rooting for him throughout his chaotic capers. On the night I saw the show the role of Pamela, Annabella and others was played by understudy Hannah Parker. She juggles her different roles wonderfully from villainess to heroine, perfectly executing the comedy accents. Eugene McCoy and Maddie Rice are Clown 1 and Clown 2 respectively, and probably have the hardest roles to play. They deftly and energetically swap between a ridiculous amount of characters, sometimes even within the same scene. Its pretty impressive to see them dash between cockney milkman, international spy, or Scottish farmer within a matter of minutes.

In the nine years since the show was last staged, the West End has changed, but this show appears not to have quite caught up. Currently playing are shows such as Operation Mincemeat and The Play That Goes Wrong who both seem inspired by this style of play but seem to have a bit more contemporary awareness and crucially engaging plot to them. Unfortunately, the pace does become a little slow throughout the piece, and gave me the feeling it could have benefitted by being 10-15 minutes shorter. This means the jokes that were roaringly fantastic in the first half, become a little too predictable and worn in the second half without a thrilling plot to retain the audiences attention.

One impressive element in this production of The 39 Steps is in the inventive set design by Peter McKintosh, enabling quick scene changes that are often part of the joke too. His set provides some wonderful visual theatre, and finds exceptionally creative and charming ways to depict an escape through a window, a high-speed train chase, and even a waterfall, with a nod to Hitchcock’s other works.

There is no doubt that The 39 Steps is an enjoyable night at the theatre, and the laughs and smiles around me were testament to that. Its often inventive staging and madcap humour that draws the audience together is undeniably charming. However, its comedy capers and talented cast aren’t quite enough to distract from the chaotic and often weak plot that never really reaches a climax.