Review: THE DA VINCI CODE at Indiana Repertory Theatre

First, it was a runaway best-selling novel, then a globetrotting film starring Tom Hanks; now the newest iteration of The Da Vinci Code makes its way to the stage. The Indiana Repertory Theater’s season opener is a fast-paced thriller that tackles symbolism throughout the ages as a professor gets swept up in a conspiracy during a trip to Paris.

The set makes the most of projector screens with echoes of the Louvre pyramid glowing throughout the show. After a while, it gets a bit tiring on the eyes, but it's a dramatic and striking way to capture the audience's attention before the show even begins. The digital screens are an intricate part of the story. They show security footage, hallways of art in museums and churches, symbols within paintings, etc.

Megan Kreidler plays Sophie, a cryptographer with the French Police.  Her performance beautifully balances grief, vulnerability, and curiosity. It's hard to adapt a popular book to the stage, but the sense of adventure isn’t lost in this production. It discusses religion and the rewriting of history with frankness. The show also doesn’t shy away from dark moments, like the self-flagellation of our villainess monk.

The fact that the second act gives space for quiet expository conversation is definitely a strength of the show. I love that it trusts that the momentum of the first act will be maintained without a breakneck pace. That quiet transition after the intermission allows the audience to become invested in the characters. A simple, calm conversation on a plane gives depth and backstory in the midst of the cross-country mystery.

The show sticks its landing in the final act not through a dramatic reveal, but through human connection. It's that beating heart that elevates The Da Vinci Code from being just a fun whirlwind adventure to becoming a cultural phenomenon that has remained popular for decades.  

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