Review: Sleuth

Mar 21 2008 by Gail Cooper, Western Mail

Clwyd Theatr Cymru, Mold

WE ALL love a good thriller, and Anthony Shaffer’s 1970 play Sleuth has been a hit from day one, with its stylish dialogue and unexpected plot twists.

Laurence Olivier and Michael Caine made the roles their own in the film version, but this stage revival directed by Joe Harmston, now on tour to Mold, is an enjoyable successor.

Simon McCorkindale takes the Olivier role of Andrew Wyke, the successful crime writer living in an overblown mock-Gothic mansion, obsessed with puzzles and games. Tweed jacketed and cavalry twilled, he is the epitome of the prosperous country gentleman, swilling whisky as he awaits his arrival of his guest.

His guest is Milo Tindle, played by the elegant Michael Praed. Looking gorgeously retro in a ’70s silk Italian suit sharp enough to cut your fingers on, Praed at first exudes confidence and charm, until the classic line, “I understand you want to marry my wife,” is delivered by his host and he is wrong-footed.

Tindle, it emerges, is preparing to take on Wyke’s wife, Marguerite – whom we never see – an extravagant, feckless woman, and Wyke interviews him as though he is a prospective son-in-law in a delicious game of verbal ping pong.

Both actors are adept at altering their persona from top dog to underdog as the preposterous plot proceeds, and Tindle is persuaded to dress as a clown to stage a break-in to finance his future with Marguerite.

It is preposterous, yes, but no more so than those TV favourites we enjoy every weekend like Midsomer Murders or Lewis.

Designer Simon Scullion’s mock-Gothic country house set sometimes looks as rickety as the plot, yet seems perfect for that “other-worldly” world of the thriller. And Shaffer’s language, winking an eye at the audience, turns this into a very superior whodunit? – or perhaps more of a “how he dunit.”

I enjoyed lines including, “You’ve got all the killer instincts of a 20-year-old Sealyham”, and “sex is a game; marriage is the penalty.”

Two big acting names from TV fame, Shaffer’s reputation as a playwright, even the current film revival of the piece with Michael Caine now playing the older man’s role: all these factors are helping to pack the house at Clwyd Theatr Cymru for Sleuth.

Even if you have seen it before, Sleuth provides a witty and entertaining evening. And if you have never seen it, prepare for some shocks…

The show runs until tomorrow. The box office number is 0845 330 3565