Octagon Theatre, Bolton – until Saturday 10th May 2025
Reviewed by Rebecca Hampson
3***
Adapted by Patrick Barlow from the novel by John Buchan and the movie by Alfred Hitchcock, The 39 Steps follows Richard Hannay as he embarks on an adventure of romance and murder.
This new production at the Octagon allows its 4 strong cast to perform a variety of characters (over 150 in total!) charming the audience with comedy and whit.
In this production Mateo Oxley takes on the illustrious role of Richard Hannay, and his performance is close to swoon worthy with the impeccable RP accent we know so well to Hannay.
The stand out performance for me was from Phil Yarrow in the role of Mrs Jordan. This slapstick performance left me giggling as I watched others in the audience laughing along too.
Having taught this play, I found it a great joy to finally see it on stage, even if it was not quite what I had dreamt up.
Whilst this new take on a classic was enjoyable I did find myself confused by certain choices made. I couldn’t tell if things were meant to be going wrong, in the way of the fantastic “The Play That Goes Wrong” or if these were elements that needed fine tuning.
That being said the consistent laughter from the audience proved that if intentional, the audience were lapping it up.