Tribute to 'The 39 Steps' is Hitchcock-amamie
NEW YORK - I was caught wholly off-guard during the first act of The 39 Steps, the goofy adaptation of Alfred Hitchcock's revered and sophisticated 1935 spy thriller that opened last night on Broadway: It bordered on mockery. I couldn't figure why anyone would take such a smart movie and turn it into a shtick-a-minute lampoon.
NEW YORK - I was caught wholly off-guard during the first act of The 39 Steps, the goofy adaptation of Alfred Hitchcock's revered and sophisticated 1935 spy thriller that opened last night on Broadway: It bordered on mockery. I couldn't figure why anyone would take such a smart movie and turn it into a shtick-a-minute lampoon.
The Roundabout Theatre Company production is burlesque one moment, melodrama the next - and, always, self-ridicule.
By Act 2, Patrick Barlow's adaptation of the film, and the John Buchan novel on which Hitchcock based it, came clear to me: It's a tribute, in an offhand way, to the film master and to his portfolio. The show is clever and at the same time silly, a dogged spoof of a 73-year-old film that assumes we love, and know, the original. It wears itself out by being technically perfect and emotionally empty. How many overarched eyebrows, supercharged interchanges, and purposely telegraphed laff-lines can we handle in the course of a couple of hours?
You begin to expect all the unexpected stage business from the fabulous cast of four actors who play every role in the film - and I mean every role, because even the bit parts and throwaway lines show up on stage, including the momentary appearance of Hitchcock, among silhouetted stick puppets used at one point.
The script employs, I'd say, 85 percent of the original, and the best way to see the show is to rent the movie and watch it immediately beforehand. The 39 Steps not only picks itself apart, it refers to Hitchcock's other work: A moment under a waterfall (here, a shaking white curtain), which is key in the film, becomes Psycho's shower scene; a sign for a Scottish village is overrun with The Birds.
The production, imported from London, is full of these amusing Oh, look! moments. Director Maria Aitken supplies an arsenal of rat-a-tat physical stage gags, which employ everything from different hats for quick character changes to an unfurled cloth representing a stream to a windowpane that an actor carries, then crawls through.
I found myself admiring The 39 Steps with a sort of academic respect for its technical brilliance - this includes Mic Pool's on-target sound effects, Kevin Adams' lighting, and Peter McKintosh's do-it-yourself set, which the actors maneuver to endless advantage. But I didn't find myself in hysterics, which all this intends.
Charles Edwards plays Richard Hannay, the everyday guy who is dragged into a spy adventure, and he's dashing and agile and always sure you know that this is all a joke. Jennifer Ferrin plays the three very different female roles, and she's excellent in each. Cliff Saunders and Arnie Burton play everyone else, and I hope they're being paid by the character; they are hands-down the most versatile character actors currently on Broadway.
The 39 Steps
Adapted by Patrick Barlow from the Alfred Hitchcock film written by Charles Bennett and Ian Hay, and from the book by John Buchan. Directed by Maria Aitken, sets and costumes by Peter McKintosh, lighting by Kevin Adams, sound by Mic Pool. Presented by the Roundabout Theatre Company.
The cast: Charles Edwards (Richard Hannay), Jennifer Ferrin (Annabella, Pamela, Margaret), Cliff Saunders (Man #1), Arnie Burton (Man #2).
Playing at the American Airlines Theatre, 227 W. 42d St., New York, through March 23. Tickets: $51.25-$96.25. Information: 212-719-1300 or www.roundabouttheatre.org.
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