Deathtrap is quite possibly the best comedy thriller ever written. In fact, it’s probably one of the first. Written by Ira Levin (who also wrote legit thrillers such as Rosemary’s Baby), Deathtrap is known as being the longest-running thriller on Broadway, as well as having been adapted into a film in 1982 with Christopher Reeve and Michael Caine.
Sidney Bruhl is a writer, struggling to get a new hit play written. Having had a string of successes, followed by a succession of flops, he now teaches. His student, Clifford Anderson, sends him a script that’s an out-and-out hit and now Sidney needs to decide whether to help the kid get it made, or maybe kill him and sell the play as his own. Unfortunately, this all happens in the first scene, and any more revealing of plot would ruin what is purely an ingeniously written meta-comedy, with the play unfolding in front of you as it’s written.
The Darlinghurst Theatre Company production is high-calibre, with the first most noticeable piece being the set. Designed by Michael Hankin, the stage is a perfect, sleek representation of late-’70s Upstate New York without a hint of kitsch. Lighting by Verity Hampson also heightens both the suspense as well as the comedy simultaneously to great effect. The cast is also standout, with stage veteran Andrew McFarlane excellently charming and vindictive as Bruhl while Timothy Dashwood steals the show as the initially innocent Anderson. Georgina Symes is an audience favourite as Helga Ten Dorp, the crazed psychic next door, and Sophie Gregg is equally solid in the short-lived role of Myra Bruhl.
It’s refreshing to see such a fun and unpretentious play on the Sydney stage, offering nothing more than a great night out at the theatre. Take your mum or your other half, and have a good solid laugh.
4/5 stars
Deathtrap is playing at Eternity Playhouse until Sunday May 10.
