The 39 Steps

The Blackmore Players have, once again, amazed me with their talent, creativity and sense of fun in their latest production of The Thirty-Nine Steps. What was once a gripping adventure book by John Buchan has been transformed into a hilarious spy ‘spoof ‘for the stage over the years. The main action relies on the talents and versatility of just 4 main actors all assuming a catalogue of roles during the course of the play. By the addition of numerous hats, coats, aprons and wigs, and ever-changing scenery, these 4 actors managed to propel us through this fast-moving plot.

Alan Cordell took on the role of Richard Hannay, the leading man with a very tedious life. Alan, sporting a very fetching curly brown wig, leads us into this parody of the book and film. He displayed absolute mastery of the stage and played the bewildered but driven main character with great conviction. I must, at this stage, applaud the whole cast on mastering every word of this script as well as the switches in characters, often mid-way through the scene, this is such a lot of work for them as individual performers and the whole show ran smoothly and at a fast pace for which a lot of credit must go to the director of this show, Alf Currey. To pull off this kind of play needs so much work and rehearsal to make it look effortless. I really enjoyed Alan’s interpretation of this role and the nicely underplayed delivery of some of the more ridiculous twists and turns.

Marcia Alderson took on the roles of the mistresses of Richard Hannay. The first of these were the spy, Anabella Schmidt, who’s very convincing German accent and interesting (and, dare I say, hilarious) demise with a floppy dagger in her back, introduced us to the spy element of the story. Marcia was a very glamourous element in the show and was both humorous and seductive in turns. She has a lovely warm delivery with a carefully concealed twinkle in her eye during her various roles within in the plot.

The stage effects that punctuate the play are well known but were carefully replicated for Blackmore’s production. The peeping through the blinds at the 2 spies and the lamppost was really hysterical, as were the use of the mobile door for going from outside to inside. These changes in scenery, sound effects, lighting and acting made many of these scenes memorable. The train sequence, as they all looked out of the sliding train window and then sidled down the outside of the carriage whilst shaking each other’s jackets to simulate the breeze, was so well done as was the campaign speeches and the biplane. There were so many fun scenes within the show that it is difficult to list them all, but the audience really appreciated the ridiculousness of each and every one. We were all thoroughly involved. The choreography involving the set added to the fluency of the whole production. Well done to the stage crew!

The 2 clowns, as they are listed in the programme, were clown one, James Hughes, and clown 2, Joyce Stafford. These 2 actors were unbelievable in their handling of these complex roles. James, as he went from spy to paperboy to innkeeper’s wife and multiple roles in between, not only had to cope with changes of accents but also with changs of hats and costumes both on and offstage. Both actors were well rehearsed in their roles as to make it all seem effortless and just a bit of fun. But the accuracy and fluency with which they interpreted their roles was extremely impressive. Joyce demonstrated her versatility from using a Scottish accent when the action moved to the Scottish Highlands as well as her Mr Memory delivery and all the numerous roles the part demanded. Both actors worked so well together to produce a very funny and very smooth performances.

Props were very well done, especially the giant sandwiches, and costumes accurate and completely fitting the era. The larger props and set pieces were really good and the stage crew, in combination with the lighting and sound effects, made the whole run so smoothly. Well done to the whole team especially Alf, at the helm.

Many thanks for your warm welcome to Blackmore and for looking after us so well. It was lovely to see everyone again. I had a really lovely evening and can’t wait for the next show.

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