THE 39 STEPS to Open at Syracuse Stage This Fall

Syracuse Stage will continue its 25/26 season with “The 39 Steps,” playwright Patrick Barlow’s Monty Python-esque spoof of the classic Alfred Hitchcock film, with a cast of four actors playing dozens of roles. Directed by Benjamin Hanna, “The 39 Steps” is a co-production with the Indiana Repertory Theatre, and will run October 22 through November 9 in the Archbold Theatre at Syracuse Stage.

“’The 39 Steps’ is fun on so many levels: it's a smart and hilarious send up of the classic Hitchcock film and it is a tour de force for this company of four brilliant actors,” said Artistic Director Robert Hupp. “It's been 14 years since Syracuse Stage last produced ‘The 39 Steps’ and we felt the time was more than right for a return to this madcap mystery with an all new production.  Sometimes you just want a night out where you can leave the troubles of the world behind for a few hours: Welcome to ‘The 39 Steps’.” 

“The 39 Steps” follows Richard Hannay, a bored bachelor living in 1930’s London, as he’s unwittingly thrown into a world of international espionage, secret organizations and murder. Based on the 1935 movie directed by Hitchcock, itself an adaptation of the 1915 novel from John Buchan, the play is a fast-paced, comic re-telling of Hannay’s adventures, which begin after a woman claiming to be a spy winds up dead in his flat after a frivolous night at the theatre. With the police hot on his trail, Hannay must question everything and everyone—including Pamela, a striking blonde he meets on the train—if he’s to stay alive long enough to uncover the meaning behind the cryptic 39 Steps.

“This play showcases the impressive, chameleon-like skills of four brilliant actors,” said Hanna. “‘The 39 Steps’ is an invitation to awaken our imagination and celebrate theatrical ingenuity on a thrilling madcap adventure.”

Originally premiering in London’s West End in 2005, Barlow’s award-winning adaptation zips through plot twists, quick changes and endless punchlines; a laughter-filled love letter to both classic spy stories and the singular magic of live theatre. Jürgen Hooper plays the hero Richard Hannay, with Tyler Meredith as Annabella Schmidt, Margaret and Pamela. A parade of policemen, gangsters, professors, inspectors, proprietors and other colorful characters are played by Michael Stewart Allen and Ema Zivkovic.