Theatre Royal, York – until 5th April 2025
Reviewed by Katie Brewerton
5*****
Based on the 1959 Alfred Hitchcock film North by Northwest begs the question: “It would be strange, would it not, if, in a city of seven million people, one man were never mistaken for another…” From director Emma Rice and Wise Children the story follows Roger Thornhill (Ewan Wardrop) who finds himself in hot water when he is mistaken for George Caplan, a man who is wanted by criminal Vandamm (Karl Queensborough) and his cronies Anna (Mirabelle Gremaud) and Valerian (Simon Oskarsson). He finds himself determined to find George Caplan to clear his name and avoid being murdered or arrested. He comes in to contact with Eve Kendall (Patrycja Kujawska) who seems suspiciously eager to help him in any way.
With the Professor (Katy Owen) guiding the audience from the beginning we soon learn there’s more to the story than meets the eye, with the CIA involved willing to go to extreme lengths to protect their Agent Number One.
Owen engages the audience and keeps up a reminder of who’s who and what’s going on, including a recap after the interval in case you’re struggling to keep up! With the clever use of suitcases, with the names of characters and locations written on them to change location. This is a clever addition to avoid having to use elaborate sets and keeps it simple with a cast of just 6, each with their own main character and also filling in the smaller roles. Despite being a fast paced show this all helps to ensure you are able to follow along.
With clever humour throughout and the breaking of the fourth wall to involve the audience this play had much of the audience laughing out loud from the beginning. If you’re looking for a fun night out where nothing is taken too seriously with a bit of a mystery thrown in, this is the play for you!