Dial M for Murder - – 27th September 2021 – Theatr Clwyd

Retired champion tennis player Tony Wendice (played by Strictly Come Dancing winner Tom Chambers) wants to murder his socialite wife Margot (X-factor finalist Diana Vickers.) Not only has Margot been unfaithful to her husband by having an affair with crime writer Max Halliday, but she’s also sitting on a small fortune which her husband needs to get his hands on the because he’s broke. Whilst he may have several trophy’s lining his front room shelves, he was playing tennis in an era where tennis players weren’t paid.

Many people will be aware of Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 film version of Dial M for Murder starring Ray Milland and Grace Kelly, however, it was BBC television that first aired a production in 1952; the same year that a theatrical version was also performed.

As I loved Hitchcock’s version, I was rather excited to finally watch this play; I’d bought tickets pre-covid when the tour was first announced, but unfortunately the production had to be postponed several times until it was deemed safe to reopen our theatres and touring could commence.

Is there such a thing as the perfect crime?

Tony has spent months perfecting the perfect murder, however, he’s a coward who won’t get his hands too dirty, so he enlists the help of an old acquaintance from his Cambridge University days, Charles Swann. Tony is aware that Charles became a small-time criminal and because this is the perfect crime, he can use his knowledge of Charles’ history to his advantage. He arranges a meeting with Swann, claiming he wishes to purchase the car Swann is selling, but over a few drinks, he confides in Swann about Margot’s infidelity. Six months earlier, Tony had stolen Margot’s handbag which contained a love letter from Mark, and he sent her an anonymous blackmail letter about it. Whilst confiding in Swann, Tony hands him the love letter to read, now that the letter has Swann’s fingerprints all over it, Tony tells Swann he can either accept £1000.00 to murder Margot, or he can be unveiled as the mystery man who blackmailed her. Swann grudgingly agrees to become Tony’s accomplice, and Tony explains his perfect plan for murder…

Oh what a tangled web we weave, 

When first we practice to deceive'…

 Mark Halliday is back on UK soil and visiting Margot. Tony tells Mark he should accompany him to a stag party the following evening thus leaving Margot home alone. Tony will hide Margot’s door key under the mat so that Charles can let himself into the property and hide. Tony would then telephone Margot from the party and whilst answering the phone, Charles would strangle her and then leave signs of a burglary before leaving the flat and replacing the door key back where he’d found it. Now the only problem with Tony’s plan is that it is reliant on everyone playing their part perfectly, and the only fly in the ointment is that Margot doesn’t know what her role in his devious scheme entails. So, just like Marmion, we’re about to witness a domino effect of complications which begin to spiral out of control.

Set in the front room of a ground floor flat in Maida Vale, this production is set a decade later than the original, a transformation that doesn’t add anything to this clunky new production of the classic thriller. The soundtrack opening the show is the 1959 classic The Flamingos - I Only Have Eyes For You, which immediately transported me back to The Deep Blue Sea at The National with Tom Burke and Helen McCrory. I say the production was clunky, because whilst I enjoyed the play, it wasn’t the edge of the seat spine-chilling thriller I was expecting. Instead, director Anthony Banks has injected a light-heartedness into the staging, which suits Tom Chambers’ acting style, but means that parts of the play which should be extremely dramatic, elicit raucous laughter from audience.

Tom Chambers appears to be having great fun playing the role of psychopath Tony Wendice, but he is too maniacal, and it undermines the cold calculated mind of a wife killer; I also found the smug self-esteem overbearing and the references to his past tennis career in his dancelike movements across the stage unnecessary.

Whilst all the actors were good, I felt there was a distinct lack of chemistry between the central trio, which made the whole plot unbelievable, and I didn’t really care who was sent to the gallows in the end.  And then there was the murder itself.

The joy of this storyline is that the audience has had it spelt out to them from the start what is supposed to happen. The tension in the air should become palpable as we move through Tony’s plan and see it start to fracture, but the comedic edge dilutes the tension. There isn’t that sense of shock from Margot, surprise yes, but not a deep dark horror that someone has just tried to kill her. The murder scene needed more conviction to keep me on the edge of my seat.

It was an enjoyable evening out, but it was less thriller and more comedic caper for my liking; but maybe a bit of tactical light relief is what people need in the current climate, and if that’s what the audience want – this production delivers on that front.

 

Dial M for Murder

Theatr Clwyd – Anthony Hopkins Theatr from

Running time 2 hours 20 mins

Tony Wendice: Tom Chambers

Margot Wendice: Diana Vickers

27 September – 2 October 2021 Theatr Clwyd, Mold
5 – 9 October 2021 Cambridge Arts Theatre
11 – 16 October 2021 Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham
18 – 23 October 2021 Lyceum Theatre, Sheffield
26 – 30 October 2021 Milton Keynes Theatre
2 – 6 November 2021 New Theatre Cardiff
9 – 13 November 2021 Palace Theatre, Southend On Sea
15 – 20 November 2021 The Lowry, Salford
29 November – 4 December 2021 Festival Theatre Malvern

The Lady Vanishes - Theatr Clwyd

The Lady Vanishes is one of Hitchcock’s greatest movies; so, would a screen to stage adaption retain the magic of the various adaptations, or would it be a bridge too far bearing in mind nearly all the action takes place on a train?

The hush of the auditorium is broken by the fanfare-like strains of Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries and this sets the tone for the rest of the production. As the curtain rises, we are transported back to Nazi Germany, soldiers and passengers throng a dreary railway station, swastika flags hanging down towards piles of suitcases. A stern Nazi officer barks in German at the confused and frustrated passengers who are waiting for their train to Zurich which has been delayed by an avalanche.

On the platform we are introduced to the characters of the play, and Juliet Mills steals these first few moments as the lady in tweed, Miss Froy. Even though she is only sitting, calmly reading her newspaper and eating a sandwich, whilst the rest of the passengers get more and more irate by their delayed journey, you can’t help but be transfixed by her presence.

The screenplay was originally adapted from Ethel Lina White’s novel, The Wheel Spins, but Hitchcock radically revamped the tale into the well-loved story we now know, creating two of cinema’s most loved comic duo’s, Charters and Caldecott, the two English gentlemen, so ensconced in their love of cricket, that they are blissfully unaware of most of the events happening around them. Both Robert Duncan and Ben Nealon add an air of daft fun as they charm their way through the play with witty cricket banter and dismay of the interruptions that may cause them to miss the final day of the test match at Old Trafford.

As the train is set to depart, Iris, receives a knock on the head. As she makes her way to her train compartment, she is looked after by the mysterious Miss Froy.

The sides of the station cleverly fold in on themselves to form two train carriages of Morgan Large’s imaginative set. This is where the majority of the action will take place, however, when the doors of the carriages are closed, they create the windows of the dining car, whilst tables and chairs are placed in situ for some of the most important scenes in the play.

As drunk by a million Mexicans!

Miss Froy suggests that Iris takes tea in the dining car with her. Miss Froy ensures she has a cup of her favourite Merriman’s Herbal Tea, as drunk by a million Mexicans, and she pulls a packet from her bag to hand to the steward. Iris has difficulty hearing Miss Froy’s name as she introduces herself, so she writes it in the steam on the train window. These seemingly innocuous acts add to the twists and turns as the journey progresses. Following a nap, Iris awakes to find Miss Froy has disappeared on the moving train…but no-one else aboard the train can remember ever seeing the old school governess on board.

Of course, railways have been synonymous with romance and seduction (think Brief Encounter or a trip on the Orient Express) so of course, Iris must bump into someone she can share an intimate moment with! Max, a musicologist, travelling around the Balkans collecting folk songs could be her ideal beau, however, Iris is traveling to the UK to marry an aristocrat so will not entertain the idea. Instead the couple bicker and argue in a humoristic British fashion as Iris (Lorna Fitzgerald who EastEnders fans will know as Abi Branning) tries to convince Max that she has not gone mad…Miss Froy really did exist.

Dr Hartz (Maxwell Caulfied formerly of Dynasty fame) blames Iris’s confusion on the blow she sustained to her head, but Max, played by Matt Barber, finds evidence to suggest that Iris is not insane and together they try to find out what really happened to Miss Froy.

A first class thriller!

The first half of this production is as fast paced as the train thundering down the tracks in this remarkable production, directed by Roy Marsden, who many will be familiar with in his role as Adam Dalgliesh in the ITV series by P D James. The second half becomes even more thrilling, and this is where I started to regret sitting on the front row, a hairs breadth from the stage!

The sword fight that went on in the luggage compartment had me sitting back in my seat for fear that I might lose an ear, but I needn’t worry, the choreography led to a stunning fight scene in which you waited to draw breath. As the thriller bowled along, the last fifteen minutes become physically charged with a tense shoot out and me jumping out of my skin every time a gun-shot rang out (and there were many!)

The actors bring together a play full of warmth, energy, tension and humour which keeps you gripped to your seats throughout.

It’s a first-class thriller and one you should try to catch as it rumbles into town!

Remaining 2019 UK Tour venues

Edinburgh Kings Theatre, 18 – 23 February

New Brighton Floral Pavilion Theatre, 25 February – 2 March

Blackpool Grand Theatre, 4 – 9 March

Richmond Theatre, 11 – 16 March

Malvern Festival Theatre, 19 – 23 March

Bromley Churchill Theatre, 25 – 30 March

Chesterfield Pomegranate Theatre, 1 – 6 April

Stoke Regent Theatre, 8 – 13 April

Inverness Eden Court Theatre, 15-20 April

Barnstaple Queen’s Theatre, 23 – 27 April

Doncaster Cast Theatre, 3 – 8 June

Llandudno Venue Cymru, 10 – 15 June

Lichfield Garrick Theatre, 17 – 22 June

Aberdeen His Majesty’s Theatre, 24 – 29 June

Glasgow Theatre Royal, 1 – 6 July

Crewe Lyceum Theatre, 8 – 13 July

Cardiff New Theatre, 15 – 20 July

Leeds Grand Theatre, 22- 27 July.