by Artistic Director Julian Wiles
As a kid, I remember watching Alfred’s Hitchcock’s The Birds on TV and being terrified of birds for the next week or so. It takes an imaginative (and somewhat off-kilter) sensibility to turn something as innocent as birds into the horsemen of the apocalypse. For in general, a Hitchcock film meant you were entering into a twisted world – whether it was Psycho, or Spellbound, or his spy films like Notorious or The 39 Steps. In almost all of these films, an innocent somehow gets caught in some nefarious plot leading to amazing chases . . . ranging from the top of Mount Rushmore to, in the case of The 39 Steps, the tops of moving rail cars and the lochs and moors of Scotland. In Hitchcock’s world, characters were sent dashing, often just ahead of danger, wherever his imaginative mind directed them.
The same sort of imaginative minds created the original stage production of The 39 Steps at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in England in 2005—beginning with the improbable idea of putting all of Hitchcock’s film onstage AND doing it with just four actors! But that simple, wild and crazy idea created one of the most imaginative comedies in years—one that was a hit in London, then in New York (where it became Broadway’s longest running comedy) and then in theatres all over the world. Audiences everywhere have delighted in the antics of the Monty Python/silent movie-like comic routines of the four tireless actors who bring this breakneck comedy to life with each performance.
Imagination is the heart and soul of theatre, and at Charleston Stage we have a team of over 100 actors, scenic artists, costumers and technicians working year round to give this great city the most imaginative productions ever. That creativity is fueled by your ticket purchases and especially by your generous support. We are heartened that, since we have returned to the Dock Street, ticket sales have grown and continue to grow with each production. But your support, especially in our upcoming Annual Campaign, is critical to keeping the fires of creativity and imagination burning.
Thanks so much for your support of the imaginative work of Charleston Stage. I know you will enjoy the creativity and off-the-wall hilarity of Alfred Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps.
