Sleuth – York Grand Theatre and Opera House Review

DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW

Reviewed by Lisa Harris

Sleuth is billed as one of the greatest stage thrillers and ran in New York as well as London for 12 years, winning the Tony Award for best play in 1971. The play inspired a film which starred Michael Cain and Laurence Olivier in 1972. Sleuth as a film was remade in 2007 directed by Kenneth Branagh and starring Jude Law and Michael Caine.

A play by Anthony Shaffer this production is by Bill Kenwright LTD, directed by award winning Rachel Kavenaugh, designed by Julie Godfrey, the lighting designer is Tim Oliver and the sound Designer is Andy Graham.

The play stars Todd Boyce (Familiar as Corrie’s recently deceased bad guy Stephen Reid) as Andrew Wyke and Neil McDermott (Familiar as Ryan Malloy in Eastenders) as Milo Tindle. We spend the entirety of the first half with the two of them as the backbone of the story unfolds … or does it.

In the second half we briefly meet three other police characters as we start to wonder what exactly have we seen and what exactly is the truth.

This show runs for 2 hours and 5 minutes including an interval, 50 minutes each act, and nothing is quite as it seems throughout.

Set in the 1970s in a very traditional country house the set doesn’t change throughout which allows you to concentrate on all you are seeing and hearing as you become familiar with the props used and stage layout.

What felt most familiar about this set was its resemblance to that of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap, the styling and placement of windows, the fireplace, wooden panelling and doorways echoed the staging in many ways. The set really is impressive, with many details and oddities you will notice as the play goes on.

In this story, a crime thriller writer, Andrew Wyke is penning his latest book adding to his manuscript, when a guest, Milo Tindle arrives and is quickly drawn into Wyke’s world where nothing turns out to be as it seems.

I’ve read this described frequently elsewhere as a dark psychological thriller and a manipulative psychologically twisted “whodunnit”. I’m not sure i would describe this as a powerful thriller and for me it is perhaps more of a what and “whydunnit” as a story unfolds.

Perhaps the Christie-like set created an expectation for me of what was to unfold and maybe the hype had led me to expect to be on the edge of my seat, and I just wasn’t.

The actors did a fine job of delivering the script in pacey interactions. So pacey it was at times a little difficult to not miss what was being said and I found myself wishing the delivery would be slowed down, particularly by Boyce. There were lengthy monologues that had humour which did cause the odd rippling chuckle around the audience. I can’t help but think if the pace was slowed more of the creative use of language in the writing would shine through and more of the humour and clever writing would be noticed.

It is hard to say more without revealing more of the story. My expectations were high as I was aware that these two actors have been highly praised elsewhere for their captivating performances. I have to admit I had a few reservations having read reviews elsewhere that this play has the potential to fall flat when performances are lacking.

The first half as a story felt nothing to write home about, the pace did indeed pick up in the second but for me, this production is a little over hyped. Was I on the edge of my seat? Did it meet my expectations? The amusing banter and unnerving developments indeed slid us from two men messing around into the whodunnit / why-do-it territory with extended monologues. That said, I can’t say I was captivated. Chatting to other audience members and listening to comments made I realised there was a very mixed response from others too. Those who loved it were in the minority, the slightly hesitant, well it is cleverly written and I like the actors yet it seems to miss something over-all, were more commonly commented upon in various ways and I am inclined to agree with this.

Staff
Staff I encountered were friendly, approachable, and professional.

Price & Value
Tickets at York cost from £13 – £55 each and there is a £3.80 booking fee.
Would I consider the price of the tickets good value for money? I was in row L and my view was great, comfortable with plenty leg room. My seat would have been £45 and for me this is overpriced, I certainly would have felt disappointed if I had paid £55 to see this. That said, if you can pick up a reasonably priced or bargain ticket it then it is a show you wouldn’t mind seeing if you like me are a regular theatre goer. It’s not the best play I’ve seen at this venue and it isn’t up there with best thrillers I have seen either, so go with managed expectations and you won’t be disappointed.

Venue. parking & facilities
The venue itself was never originally intended to be a theatre. The website explains the buildings that comprise the Grand Opera House York officially opened in 1902 with Little Red Riding Hood starring Florrie Ford. Since then, it has been owned by FJ Butterworth, the Shepherd of Shambles and the India Pru Co. Ltd who spent £4,000,000 restoring the theatre to its former glory in 1987.
For parking, if you buy through ATG you can access a pre-book discount of 15% the nearest Qpark where you can get a discounted parking is The Shambles which is only around a 5-minute walk away, there is another qPark around 15 minutes away and many other options across the city.
The toilet facilities were minimal so expect to queue, yet they were clean. The venue itself was very clean and well maintained, although I would say inside the auditorium was cold as the play began.

Accessibility
The Grand Opera House does not have a lift. Access to the Foyer Bar, Dress Circle and Grand Circle is via stairs only.

There are 10 wheelchair spaces available in Stalls at the end of rows G, H, M, N and R, some of which are transfer to seat only. These need to be requested at the time of booking and it is advisable to speak to the access team if you wish to visit with a motorised mobility wheelchair/scooter.

Rating: 3/5
Price of tickets £13-£55 plus booking fee of £3.80
Tickets can be booked by visiting
https://www.atgtickets.com/shows/sleuth/grand-opera-house-york/
York Theatre and Opera House, Cumberland St, York YO1 9SW
The show runs at York until Saturday 2nd March.