Grand Theatre, Leeds – until 27 July 2019
Reviewed By Dawn Smallwood
3.5***
Bill Kenwright is renowned for presenting a variety of productions whether it’s a musical or a classic thriller, the latter being the case for his latest production starring husband and wife actors, Juliet Mills and Maxwell Caulfield. The Lady Vanishes is based on Alfred Hitchcock’s classic thriller film. The Lady Vanishes, one of his most successful films, is written by Sidney Gilliat and Frank Launder and is based on Ethel Lina White’s The Wheel Spins.
This production is under the adaptation of Antony Lampard and the direction of Roy Marsden and is set in continental Europe amid the political tensions prior to the Second World War. The Lady Vanishes is about Iris (Lorna Fitzgerald) who is returning to England to marry her fiancé and is introduced to Miss Froy (Mills) in extraordinary circumstances when she experiences a concussion. There Miss Froy takes her under her wing and helps her on the train. The train departs after a considerable delay due to an avalanche blocking the railway line.
Iris comes round from her concussion and learns she is sharing the compartment with other passengers she does not know apart from Miss Froy. The following morning Miss Froy suddenly disappears and she isn’t to be seen and the other passengers don’t know or deny of her existence. Miss Froy ‘s disappearance leads to intrigue and suspense from both Iris (Fitzgerald) and Max (James Boswell) who turn detective despite strong opinions leading to misunderstanding, distrust and suspicions. Introduced is Dr Hartz (Caulfield), a brain surgeon, who appears more than what he says he is and the cricket obsessed Charters (Robert Duncan) and Caldicott (Ben Nealon) and others whose denials of Miss Froy whereabouts which challenge both Iris and Max. The plot mystifies, twists and thickens and changes towards something for things to become more sinister. Secretive pacts are slowly revealed from the characters as the performance gathers its pace till the very end. It is certainly a story where one is led to speculate and pre-empt as nothing much is given away as far as conclusions and analysis are concerned.
Morgan Large’s staging is appropriately atmospheric and the variable lighting and sounds (Charlie Morgan Jones and Dan Samson) nicely tie in. The performance is choreographed by Chris Cuming who ensures the spirit of Hitchcock is alive in the performance and raises the senses and imaginations expected.
It is a well done performance from the cast, which is led by Mills, Caulfield and Fitzgerald, who kept the spirit of the story alive from beginning to end with projected misnomers, the slow revealing of the characters’ real intentions and motives, and the fast changing plot. It is felt however for those who aren’t familiar with Alfred Hitchcock’s works is to read a bit about his thriller works beforehand in order to fully appreciate the plot.