Sleuth
Theatre Royal Windsor
Until Saturday, February 10
01753 853 888
https://theatreroyalwindsor.co.uk/sleuth-24/
SHAKESPEARE may have written a play within a play, but Anthony Shaffer managed a thriller within a thriller within a thriller.
Sleuth is quite something and for many will need little introduction. For those that have somehow missed the play since it was first performed in 1970, or either of the Michael Caine movies, do not seek out any spoilers ahead of your visit to the Theatre Royal Windsor.
Knowing what will unfold can spoil the drama, while for those who do know the source material will be delighted with this production, featuring as its main cast, two actors at the very top of their game. And they need to be, as they handle most of the action throughout the drama.
There is a cast of five: playing minor policing roles in the second act are Tom Mendriclet, William Goodison, and Kenny Wright.
But they really do play second fiddle to Coronation Street actor Todd Boyce as Andrew Wyke, and EastEnders Neil McDermott as Milo Tindle.
The play opens with Boyce, playing a famous writer who is dressed splendidly in velvet smoking jacket, gadding about his country manor decorated with circus folk.
McDermott soon enters the fray, keen to discuss plotting with the author.
And before you know it, there is some clowning around, some verbal sparring and some unsettling gamesmanship that has audiences on the edge of their seats. It transforms from banter that gets laughs into a whodunit, and they a whydunit.
The set is astonishing and makes full use of the Theatre Royal Windsor’s stage. It really does look like an opulent stately home, complete with upper levels, a stunning fireplace, a grandfather clock and a cellar, which you shouldn’t go in to.
A strong revival, and almost a two-hander with a run time of over two hours, this is a demanding play.
In the hands of two lesser actors, much of this would fall flat. Instead, their performances are such that you are hanging on to every word, every encounter, every moment. And, like the very best plays, their acting will linger long in the memory.
It is tense, twisting, thrilling. No wonder the original ran for 12 years in London and New York, winning awards along the way.
You’ll never look at a whodunit in quite the same way again.
PHIL CREIGHTON
