Accents, great facial expressions and lightning changes were the slick work of four of our best comic actors, Jane Sutherland, Danny Gorton, David Moore and David McPhail and the successful realisation of the concept was the vision of a gifted director, Nannette Wright and her team who have pulled off a very tricky task with aplomb.
The lighting was a challenging design, changing as quickly and as often as the scenes.
The musical interludes were well chosen with selections that added the right seasoning as well as a further dimension of humour.
At times, even for only the briefest of moments, where a special effect or an extraordinary prop was needed, the clever details had been meticulously attended to. It was this kind of attention that added class to a farce, inviting a sympathetic audience to relax and enjoy the zany, crazy extremes and to accept the far-fetched details of the adventure.
The stage is used to its maximum depth, two sets of curtains, and protruding boxes into the audience and this design works a treat in terms of developing realism in the expansive scenes and then tightening everything up for intimacy.
Throughout the performance, the variety at every level is engaging, the honesty of interpretation is hilarious and the final scene is picture-book perfect.
The 39 Steps
Napier Repertory Players
Little Theatre, McGrath St, Napier
November 14-24, 8pm
Tickets from Municipal Theatre, Napier
