Video: First Look at THE 39 STEPS at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley

The 39 Steps is proving to be a hit at TheatreWorks Silicon Valley having been extended! Check out clips from the production below!

This hilarious, high-speed spoof of Alfred Hitchcock's silver-screen classic hurtles a notorious fugitive and a breathtaking blonde from a London music hall to Scotland's most remote highlands crawling with devious spies. With a mysteriously murdered agent, a wicked plot to destroy England, and a race against the clock to stop it, this brilliantly funny show is a tribute to the master's greatest films. Directed by Leslie Martinson, The 39 Steps features four fearless actors changing characters more than 100 times, stretching the boundaries of theatrical invention.

The Olivier Award-winning comedy will be extended through September 22, 2019 at the Mountain View Center for the Performing Arts, 500 Castro Street, Mountain View. For tickets ($30-$100) and more information the public may visit TheatreWorks.org or call (650) 463-1960.

The 39 Steps began as an adventure novel published in 1915 by John Buchan, the first of five novels featuring Richard Hannay, an all-action hero with a stiff upper lip and a miraculous knack for getting himself out of sticky situations. The novel was adapted for film by Alfred Hitchcock in 1935 starring Robert Donat and Madeline Carroll. The film departed substantially from the book, also introducing two major female characters. In 1995 two writers based in the North of England, Nobby Dimon and Simon Corble, came up with a two-man version of The 39 Steps which toured with great success to small venues, based on both Buchan's book and on the highly reputed 1935 Hitchcock film version. Celebrated English actor and comedian Patrick Barlow was then commissioned to adapt the script for a larger production. His adaptation debuted at London's Tricycle Theatre in August 2006 and was so successful it gained an immediate transfer to the West End, where it won the Olivier Award for Best New Comedy and ran for nine years. Its Broadway production by Roundabout Theatre Company was nominated for six Tony Awards including Best Play in 2008. The New York Post declared The 39 Steps "The most entertaining show on Broadway," and The New York Times called it "Absurdly enjoyable, gleefully theatrical...a perfect soufflé." TheatreWorks presented a wildly popular production in 2011, which set attendance records and was declared "A madcap homage that revels in full-throttle theatricality," by The Mercury News. Critics and audiences have been delighted by TheatreWorks Silicon Valley's 2019 production- San Francisco Examiner deemed the comedy an "inspired romp," while The Mercury News called it a "delightfully comical journey...a wild ride indeed." Palo Alto Weekly called The 39 Steps "A winner! My best advice is to catch a performance ASAP."

TheatreWorks has assembled a stellar cast for this production. Lance Gardner stars as Richard Hannay, the determined hero. Recently appearing as Reggie in Skeleton Crew, Gardner returns to TheatreWorks Silicon Valley where he also performed in Proof, Superior Donuts, Auctioning the Ainsleys, and Anna in the Tropics. Gardner has been seen on many Bay Area stages including Berkeley Repertory Theatre Marin Theatre Company, California Shakespeare Company, San Francisco Playhouse, Magic Theatre, Aurora Theatre Company, and City Lights Theatre Company, among others. Returning to TheatreWorks Silicon Valley where she was seen in Charley's Aunt, Annie Abrams plays a series of characters including Anabella Schmidt, Pamela, and Margaret. Abrams's television credits include HBO's "True Blood," CBS's "How I Met Your Mother," and UPN/CW's "Veronica Mars," and she has performed at regional theatres including The Ahmanson Theatre, Laguna Playhouse and Ensemble Theatre Company.

Watch the video!