Review: The Talented Mr. Ripley (UK Tour)

Review by Daz Gale

⭐️⭐️⭐️

When it comes to anti-heroes, Tom Ripley from Patricia Highsmith's book series is surely up there with the best, or should that be the worst? His misadventures have spawned multiple movies and a TV series, and now he's heading to the stage, bringing his best known story The Talented Mr. Ripley to stages all over the UK as part of a recently extended UK tour. With his previous outings receiving acclaim, would this stage version forge its way to similar success?

The Talented Mr. Ripley is centred around Tom Ripley, a nobody who gets by telling little white lies and forging signatures. That all changes when a wealthy stranger offers him an all-expenses-paid trip to Italy to bring home his wayward son, Dickie Greenleaf. Using all of his talents, Ripley befriends Dickie and begins to become obsessed, wanting his life instead of his own. Stopping at nothing to get the life he thinks he deserves, Ripley attempts to stay one step ahead of his lies, deceit and shocking crimes in what becomes a compelling game of cat and mouse.

Patricia Highsmith’s novel has enraptured audiences since it was published in 1955, and is perhaps best known for the Matt Damon led movie from 1999. I must admit to have never reading the book or seeing the movie, so went in to this story fairly blind, and I think that may have been part of the problem. It seemed to me that this adaptation ran on good faith that audiences were aware of the story beforehand. I can only speak of my own experience, but I found the first act confusing, attempting to put missing pieces together to get a sense of Ripley’s character and the actions that had taken place. While Act 2 was a lot clearer, it did seem to me this was a consideration that had been overlooked, and enjoyment of this play would very much be dependent on your own existing knowledge of the story.

Mark Leipacher’s adaptation had the difficult task of translating the story for the stage, trying different things in doing so. His writing was pretty decent throughout, though did suffer from the old clunky bit of dialogue - a shoehorned in utterance of “Believe it or not” (assumedly a reference to the unrelated Ripley’s Believe It Or Not) was wholly unnecessary, completely at odds with the tone of the show and losing the escapism of it, and that is coming from somebody who loves nothing more than a good bad pun. I also struggled to get on board with the concept of Ripley starring in his own story on a film set with random utterances of “Cut” and resetting the stage. This may have been a divisive approach that others liked, as those who have enjoyed this production far more than me will doubtlessly testify, but to me it just didn’t work at all, leaving me rather cold and confused.

Leipacher also directed the production in what I found to be the biggest factor for my inability to love the show more than I did. A sparse set design didn’t seem to fit on the stage, feeling as if it had been designed for another venue altogether. It also didn't prove very visually stimulating, not that every set needs a splash of colour, but I couldn’t help feeling a bit underwhelmed by it. Cast members ducking behind the central set piece and popping up again in the hole in the middle was used far too much, becoming so repetitive to the point I found it gimmicky. I didn’t quite understand the logic for it, and perhaps it was my sightline from my seat, but watching cast members unnaturally crouch down like a game of hide and seek did nothing for me. I found other choices throughout too perplexing - that’s not to say these were decidedly bad by any stretch, just not to my personal taste.

Other design elements fared better, with a great use of sound design from Max Pappenheim and a striking, almost blinding use of lighting from Zeynep Kepekli, used to great effect. Sarita Piotrowski’s movement direction was certainly distinctive in its approach, though again I’m unsure how much I resonated with these choices personally, though Haruka Kuroda’s detailed fight direction cannot be faulted.

The strongest element of The Talented Mr. Ripley, and one that boosts the enjoyment of the show substantially, is its exceptional cast. Bruce Herbelin-Earle is a dominant presence as Dickie Greenleaf, delivering a confident performance and showing a strong and versatile chemistry with his two leading co-stars - one of whom proves utterly captivating, with Maisie Smith continually impressing in her turn as Marge Sherwood, particularly in her climactic scenes.

The undoubted star of this production, however, is Ed McVey in his leading role as Tom Ripley. Fittingly replicating the title of the play, there really is no shortage to his talents, all of which are on display in this phenomenal performance. There is a real Jekyll & Hyde quality to the role, with McVey transforming before our very eyes from one extreme to another. Though he is essentially playing two different characters, there is a consistent essence that runs between them as he switched effortlessly from one to another, in a performance that can’t be easy but showcases McVey’s fantastic strengths. Though I may not have loved every element of this production, I can’t fault McVey’s performance in any way, in one of the more memorable feats of acting I have seen this year.

The Talented Mr. Ripley is far from perfect, but it isn’t without its charms. Elements of this production are certainly going to prove divisive, with some loving it much more than I did. Though I may not have fallen madly in love with it, I definitely enjoyed certain moments of it, namely Ed McVey’s astonishing performance, and elements of Mark Leipacher’s writing. I would have liked to have seen a bit more consistency throughout, and got the sense that perhaps not every creative involved had the same vision, resulting in a mishmash of ideas that didn’t land as cohesively as I would have hoped. Still, I can’t knock the ambition to do something different, and The Talented Mr. Ripley is certainly admirable. Like its titular anti-hero, The Talented Mr. Ripley jumps from one identity to the other, never quite knowing who it is at its heart - once it settles on what exactly it wants to be, I have no doubt that this will be a killer show.

The Talented Mr. Ripley plays at Richmond Theatre until 15th November.

Tickets available here

It continues to tour until 2nd May 2026 ahead of a planned West End run.

Dates and tickets at https://thetalentedmrripleyplay.com/ 

Photos by Mark Senior