WELCOME

“A fool tries to look different: a clever man looks the same and is different.” —John Buchan, The 39 Steps

My father is a classic film buff and Alfred Hitchcock aficionado. Many of my favorite childhood memories involve stovetop popcorn, a cold soda and hours of Turner Classic Movies on the couch with my dad. His Hitchcock collection was a carefully labeled series of Betamax tapes organized by release date. Three of my favorite films sparked a lifelong love for the genre: North By Northwest, The Man Who Knew Too Much and The 39 Steps. There was something deeply compelling about Hitchcock’s espionage thrillers, where a regular Joe finds himself, through a series of unexpected and unlucky coincidences, in a highstakes race to save humanity. Perhaps it was the very idea that one ordinary human being in extraordinary circumstances could change the course of history that inspired me, but a love affair of the genre was born.

In the stage adaptation of The 39 Steps, Patrick Barlow brilliantly imbues the play with comedy, mystery, absurdism and optimism that has captured the hearts of millions of people around the globe. In tour de force performances, four actors transform this tale into a

runaway evening of intrigue and entertainment. Through the eyes of our Everyman, Richard Hannay, we see how an ordinary evening at the theatre can quickly evolve into a death-defying hijinks, globetrotting journey that transforms our world in profoundly beautiful ways.

Richard’s navigation of a rapidly changing reality, a sense of isolation and the fragile but necessary trust of the kindness of strangers feel particularly potent today. Spoiler alert: in the end, the guy next door is reaffirmed in the value of life, love blossoms, the integrity of our nation is saved and the impossible suddenly feels infinitely more attainable.

Getting there is all of the fun. Hang on to your seats, my friends!

Hana S. Sharif

AUGUSTIN FAMILY ARTISTIC DIRECTOR