Theatre Review: 'The 39 Steps' at UConn Storrs

STORRS - The acting students in the Theatre Dept. at UConn are presenting the challenging “The 39 Steps” at the Nate Katter & Studio Theatre on Bolton Road on the Storrs campus.

On my first visit to the studio theatre, I am proud to say that I did not get lost on the huge UConn campus and actually found this building easier to locate than the Jorgensen Theatre. It took me several trips to the larger venue to discover a reliable route to the parking area nearby; the studio theatre has ample parking available during performance times just past the main entrance that is just a short walk away.

Artistic Director Megan Monaghan Rivas describes the play as a “huge, hilarious story of an ordinary guy who discovers his inner hero when he’s caught up in an espionage plot with the fate of the nation at stake. [It] is a glorious playground for four performers in a dizzying array of roles. No wonder Alfred Hitchcock was inspired by the original novel from 1915, but for my money, ‘The 39 Steps’ belongs 100% in a live theatre.”

The play is a parody adapted from the 1915 novel by John Buchan and the 1935 film by Alfred Hitchcock. It was adapted by Patrick Barlow in 2005.

The concept requires that the entirety of the 1935 adventure film be performed with a cast of only four actors and some costumed crew.

One actor plays the hero of the piece, Richard Hannay. Another actor plays the three women with whom he has romantic entanglements, and two other brave performers play every other character in the show: heroes, villains, men, women, children and even the occasional inanimate object. Of course, this often requires lightning-fast quick-changes on the part of the two “Clowns” and occasionally for the two to play multiple characters at once.

So the film's serious spy story is played mostly for laughs, and the script is full of references to other Alfred Hitchcock films. If one doesn’t necessarily follow the spy tenants of the action, the broad comedy remains enjoyable. I actually began to wonder how the performers would continue to pull off the rapid changes of characters, costumes, and accents, and if the crew could succeed in making the changes between the various settings.

The students are directed by Helen T. Clark, a Visiting Assistant Professor of Theatre Studies within the UConn Drama Department, who encouraged the actors to embrace the physical comedy in their characters. She calls this play a celebration of the Studio Theatre’s doors being open again after not having a live show there since Fall of 2019.

The performance begins with a single ghost light and then employs a clever large rectangular prism set piece that rotates 360 degrees, adorned with necessary set design at times. It lent itself to jumping off of a train beautifully, but sitting on the train was effectively done on the stage itself, as was traveling in a car. Kudos to Scenic Designer Jacob Sikorski on a thoughtful set.

Michael A. Curry, a second year MFA Acting student at the university, tackles the role of Richard Hannay. It is the only character he plays, but it is certainly enough to master. Annabelle Schmidt, Pamela and Margaret are played well by Nicolle Cooper, a senior BFA Acting student, while wearing some great costumes.

Jamie Feidner, a current senior in the BFA Acting program, is billed as Clown 1 and Ammon Downer, a junior in the BFA Acting class of 2023, plays the characters assigned to Clown 2. The two play the remaining 30 often zany characters in the script. Both accomplished the rapid fire dialogue and changes in character impressively.

The technical aspects of the show were very good, although there seemed to be some confusion on when the house lights should be on or off, for the entrances through the main aisle were not lit. The period costumes of costume designer Emily Liberatore were well done.

Every other seat in the audience is blocked off and parties are required to leave an empty seat between every person. Masks are required at all times; the crew and house staff worked wearing masks, and the actors performed while wearing a mask that matched their costumes. This made some of the directions in the script more challenging, such as smoking a pipe and drinking, and even more funny, and the mustaches on the masks were a cute touch.

The two acts run a bit over two hours, including one 10 minute intermission. Probably due to limits on tickets being sold for social distancing, all but one of the remaining performances had been declared sold out as of opening night.

Nancy Sasso Janis has been writing theatre reviews since 2012 as a way to support local theatre venues. She posts reviews of well over 100 productions each year. In 2016, she became a member of the Connecticut Critics Circle. She continues to contribute theatre news, previews, and audition notices to local Patch sites. Reviews of all levels of theatrical productions are posted on Naugatuck Patch and the Patch sites closest to the venue. She recently became a contributor to the Waterbury Republican-American newspaper. Her weekly column and theatre reviews appear in the Thursday Weekend section of the paper.

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