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Review: Hitchcock spoof at Cape Playhouse: 4 actors, 150 roles equal hit ‘The 39 Steps’

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Review: Hitchcock spoof at Cape Playhouse: 4 actors, 150 roles equal hit ‘The 39 Steps’

Barbara Clark, Contributing Writer
 |  Cape Cod Times

DENNIS ― Four talented, funny and versatile actors play close to 150 quick-change roles in “The 39 Steps,” a fast-paced comedy thriller entertaining audiences at The Cape Playhouse through Sept. 7. This hilarious, clever on-stage concoction is based on the classic 1935 black-and-white film of the same name that was directed by the late master of film magic, Alfred Hitchcock. Four equals 150 – that acting sleight-of-hand is accomplished with a dizzying variety of fancy footwork and quick changes, with hats flying through the air, clever wordplay and scenery that employs plenty of steps and ladders, crashy escape windows and a production featuring bold lighting effects, musical change-ups and a lot of dashing about that recalls the Keystone Kop frenetic antics of yesteryear.

“The 39 Steps,” adapted by Patrick Barlow from the novel by John Buchan and the classic film by Alfred Hitchcock. Directed by Kimberly Senior, presented at Cape Playhouse.

What happens in ‘The 39 Steps’?

This early classic by director Hitchcock features a favorite in his stable of quirky characters ― the beleaguered but innocent hero. This particular hero pursues crucial spy secrets across the wilds of Scotland, dallies with beautiful women and meets the dastardly villain face to face at a remote Scottish estate, all while he’s the subject of a police manhunt. He’s chased under bridges, on trains and through the Scottish mist while blocked by a flock of sheep. And as the play progresses, he becomes, literally, a prisoner of love. All this happens before the climactic scene ― a dramatic visit to the London Palladium, where he … well, we wouldn’t want to spoil the surprise.

Should you see the show and why?

Absolutely see it, if you love over-the-top, Olympic-quality athletics and acting skills, and where everyone’s just having great fun on stage. The audience has fun as well, just watching these lightning changes take place.

Kareem Bandealy is the hero, Richard Hannay, with a full gamut of physical comedy skills on display. Lori Vega plays a trio of three different women who entrance and entangle Hannay: the glittery femme fatale; a farmer’s wife who, with the aid of a Bible, helps Hannay escape the outraged farmer; and a woman he keeps crossing paths with and can’t help becoming attached to, as you’ll see.

But where would we be without the Clowns? These two multi-faceted characters fill out the show’s multifarious cast of many faces. Octavia Chavez-Richmond and Evan Zes are spectacular, playing a vast lineup of hilarious characters, gilding each one with something unique and memorable. It might be a maid or a milkman, clumsy cop or rotund police sergeant, vaudevillian or Palladium star or the key plot device Mr. Memory. There’s a digitally challenged villain and a fluffy-haired spouse, a Scots-clad innkeeper, train conductor and countless more.

Kimberly Senior takes director credits; I’m guessing she must have been in three different places at once in order to pull off the effects accomplished here. Not to mention the expert coordination that was achieved in the areas of scenic, lighting, sound and costume design, in order to bring all these flying ends together. Program credits note that the production used a “fight & intimacy choreographer” to accomplish the many physical scenes that fly by.

A last-minute glitch in the technical side of the show delayed the opening night curtain until shortly before 9 p.m., with apologies offered on the Playhouse front steps by Executive Director Nora Carey. She remained visible on site to help patrons who preferred to opt out of the evening’s show and return for a future performance and earlier start time. The show itself is on the shorter side, clocking in at about two hours, including intermission.

What are the best parts of ‘The 39 Steps’?

The award for “gem of the evening” could go to the scene where Hannay, on the run, takes a detour into a political candidates’ meeting in a rural Scottish town hall, where he’s mistaken for the speaker of the night. Clowns Chavez-Richmond and Zes are the clueless meeting organizers, and their physical and verbal comedy are priceless. Anyone familiar with the prolific verbal skills of long-ago voice actor Mel Blanc, who performed literally hundreds of unique character voices (Looney Tunes’ Bugs Bunny and countless other roles), might agree he’d be in good company here.

Don’t miss the Alfred Hitchcock clues

Throughout the show, listen for name-drops of a number of other famous Hitchcock movie classics. The wordplay alone is a trick to appreciate: it comes fast and furious.

“The 39 Steps” performs at Cape Playhouse, Route 6A, Dennis Village, through Sept. 7. Performances are 7:30 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, with 2 p.m. matinees on Aug. 31, Sept. 4 and 5. Tickets, from $45, discount offers for groups and those with Flex Passes. Call the box office: 508-385-3911, or visit capeplayhouse.org/.

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