Near sell-out for Centre Stage Taupō's The 39 Steps

Centre Stage Taupō's production of The 39 Steps takes place as a live, 1940s radio production.

With less than two weeks to go until opening night, tickets are selling out quickly for Centre Stage Taupō's production of The 39 Steps: A Live Radio Play.

The 1940s-themed live-action radio play, complete with a 10-piece onstage band and a live Foley artist providing sound effects, has proven so intriguing to local theatregoers that the company has added an extra night.

The 10 performances now have fewer than 50 tickets remaining, with four nights completely sold out and a further four each with a single empty seat remaining.

Director Kylie Dumble said the level of interest in the play showed how much locals valued what the theatre does.

“The tickets are just flying.”

Between the opening night on May 15 and the final curtain on May 25, the cast and crew will only have one evening off.

Taupō Concert Band have provided musicians to bring the production of The 39 Steps to life.

It was an intense schedule, but the company were more than capable considering the number of hours of work already put in across planning and rehearsing, Dumble said.

Many people had contributed to the structure and staging of the production.

“It’s been a real collaborative, creative process.

“It’s a thousand times better, you get all these minds together and they started throwing out ideas.”

Even more remarkable, she said, was that the more than 60 people involved were giving their time and talent for free.

“It’s all volunteers, there’s not a single paid person.”

Rehearsals started at the end of February, but Dumble started working with two Centre Stage members on the concept well before then.

Centre Stage Taupō president Kylie Dumble is making her directorial debut with The 39 Steps.

Conversations spanning more than a year with Centre Stage members Donovan and Jo Bixley had helped to bring the play’s concept to fruition.

She had hit upon the idea to perform The 39 Steps, but its length meant “it was hard to do as a proper production”.

As an actor, musician and president of Taupō Concert Band alongside his day job as an author, Donovan suggested getting a group of 10 players in the band involved.

Jo, who has directed Centre Stage productions as well as designing props, had the know-how to curate a range of objects that could be used by an onstage Foley artist, or sound effects creator.

The result is a play within a play, where a group of radio voice actors perform the Hitchcock classic, with plenty of disruptions, music and even ad breaks along the way.

This unique format meant a huge amount of creative freedom outside of the core script, said Dumble, with the Concert Band stepping up to find and learn enough music to carry through the whole performance.

“It’s turned into a way more massive beast than we expected it to.

“The music is all woven through and then they also underscore the play.

“It’s been a tonne of work, but the Concert Band is so professional, it’s blown my mind.”

The cast also pitched in with their expertise, with one actor adding realism to the radio play by composing fun, retro advertising jingles for the production’s main sponsors: Strettons, Danske Mobler, MMC Law and Embra.

“One of our really talented cast members, John Curtis- we didn’t [even have to] ask him, he said ‘Oh I’ve written a jingle’.

“I didn’t realise how talented he was musically.

“He’s written these jingles and taught them to people - he’s provided sheet music and everything.”

“All these little hidden talents within our community have come out and added pieces to it.”

The production was sure to be a memorable one, said Dumble, thanks to the dedication of the cast and crew and the high level of interest from the public.

“The ticket sales have been absolutely amazing.

“I’m amazed, humbled and blown away by the response from the community.”

• The 39 Steps: A Live Radio Play runs from May 15 - May 25 at The Playhouse, 2 Matai St, Taupō. Limited tickets are available via trybooking.com. Friends of Waipāhīhī School also have some remaining tickets as part of a school fundraiser- email fos@waipahihi.school.nz for details.

Milly Fullick is a journalist based in Taupō. She joined the Taupō & Tūrangi Herald team in 2022.