Folks impervious to the charms of vintage theater and film, immune to the allure of farce, or allergic to dry British wit and jolts of Monty Python-esque zaniness may find the fuss about "The 39 Steps" a puzzlement. Everyone else is apt to be swept along by the abundant humor and style of this ingenious show, which has settled into the Hippodrome for the last stop on a nearly year-long national tour.
Taking as it starting point Alfred Hitchcock's clever 1935 film of the same name, "The 39 Steps," adapted by Patrick Barlow, adds up to more than homage. It's a kind of love letter to the stage, a celebration of the pressures, the spontaneity and creativity that go into the venerable art of theatrical entertainment. This spring-loaded vehicle calls on four actors to put across a spy yarn with dozens of characters, played out with just a handful of props and a whole lot of flair, spiced by alternately subtle, silly and just deliciously blatant gags.
Something of a sensation when it premiered in London in 2006, "The 39 Steps" made a splash on Broadway a couple years later. The Hippodrome is a much larger space than is ideal for the show, but this touring production retains the intimate feel of the original. During the opening night performance on Tuesday, amplification was mostly sensitive, although a few of the more emphatic lines distorted. Nothing, fortunately, got in the way of the exuberance.
Acquaintance with the Hitchcock source obviously helps to enhance appreciation of this show, since part of the fun comes from seeing how the movie's most vivid scenes are re-created (and sometimes shticked-up).
The storyline revolves around Richard Hannay, a bored fellow who wanders into the London Palladium, sees a human encyclopedia act named Mr. Memory, meets a beautiful woman with a foreign accent, and ends up in a wild race against time and the law as he tries to thwart a nefarious plan to steal British military secrets. But the plot is almost incidental; here, the execution's the thing.
The show contains nods to a whole lot of the Hitchcockian oeuvre along the way. My favorite bit in this vein is a cameo by Hitchcock himself, who pops up just as he did in most of his movies. (If you're sitting some distance from the stage, you might want to bring binoculars.)
On Tuesday, Ted Deasy took a little while to settle into the part of Hannay, but soon delivered a charming, persuasive portrayal of the reluctant hero.
Claire Brownell played the three pivotal women who get tangled up with Deasy in one manner or another. She was quite funny as Annabella Schmidt, with a thick German/Eastern European/whatnot accent that hit a peak on the word "Scotland," becoming something like "Skawt-ee-lahnd."
The actress proved effective, too, as Margaret, the downtrodden Scottish farmwife who lends Hannay a helping hand, and was especially engaging as Pamela, the fateful stranger on a train who slowly learns the truth.
The largest physical burden in "The 39 Steps" is given to two actors (identified in the script as Man #1 and Man #2), responsible for playing dozens of supporting roles and rushing scenic devices on and offstage. In many ways, the whole show depends on this pair.
Eric Hissom and Scott Parkinson plunged gamely into the challenges, handling turn-on-a-dime costume and vocal changes with élan. Hissom made a particularly telling mark as the quirky Mr. Memory, with wonderfully expressive facial expressions. Parkinson was at his zestful best as the Professor, his accent and demeanor gradually transitioning from prim British to raving Nazi.
Here and there, timing could have been tighter in the performance, pacing a little more jazzed; some lines could have been delivered more colorfully, too (this was especially true of Hitchcock allusions, which didn't have quite the wink-wink-nudge-nudge zing I remembered from the Broadway production).
But, overall, the performance clicked, revealing the enduring cleverness of Maria Aitken's original direction, Peter McKintosh's set and costumes and Mic Pool's evocative sound design (complete with snippets from Hitchcock film scores, of course).
Breezy and blissfully agenda-free, "The 39 Steps" still provides an exhilarating lift.
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"The 39 Steps" runs through June 13 at the Hippodrome, 12 N. Eutaw St. Tickets are $20 to $60. Call 410-547-7328 or go to broadwayacrossamerica.com.