BWW Reviews: THRILL ME, Old Rep Theatre Birmingham, May 22 2015

Nominated for seven 'Offies' and 'Best Off West End Production' at the 2012 Whatsonstage Awards, Climar Productions' 2011 production of Thrill Me: The Leopold & Loeb Story moved to the Charing Cross Theatre for a very successful run before being revived in 2014 for the Edinburgh Fringe where it won the Bobby Award for 'Best Production'. By special arrangement with Samuel French, the show is now in the middle of a UK tour.

Unfortunately all of these esteemed accolades did not reflect in the audience numbers generated last night at the Old Rep Theatre in Birmingham; a great shame as it is a superb piece of theatre. Thrill Me focuses on Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb who want to commit the perfect crime...well, Richard is the adrenaline seeker but Nathan will do anything to be with his partner in crime - which soon unravels as the text progresses.

Being a two-man show, it is a very vulnerable place to be for the actors.There is no real set to speak of apart from a wooden framed structure upstage and merely a few props. The action flits between 'present day 1958' and flashbacks to 1924 when a murder was committed. Guy Retallack's direction along with Jo Parsons' utter commitment and focus to Leopold's character, aids these transitions well with additional assistance from Richard Williamson's lighting.

The stakes are very high throughout the show and the actors manage to sustain this with ease. Although not massively memorable, Stephen Dolginoff's musical score is reflected brilliantly soley by a piano, played by Musical Director Tom Turner. The harmonies formed with the men's voices are also very successful. One particular emotional chord struck during Parsons' rendition of 'Way Too Far'. This was the point the text took off for me personally.

Ben Woods gives a solid performance as Richard Loeb. His character takes a different journey to Nathan's and saves his real emotion until the climax of the play. Jo Parsons played Richard beforehand but showed his aptitude to perform both roles to an equally high standard. As Nathan, he gives a stunning performance.

Thrill Me: The Leopold & Loeb Story continues touring until Sunday 7th June 2015.

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