A man's boring life is turned upside down in the parody 'The 39 Steps' opening at ECT

Cheryl Morey, South Bend Tribune
·1 min read
Vincent Bilancio, left, Craig Knight and Collin Szymanski appear in a scene from Elkhart Civic Theatre’s production of "The 39 Steps," which opens May 17 and continues through May 25, 2024, at the Bristol Opera House.
Vincent Bilancio, left, Craig Knight and Collin Szymanski appear in a scene from Elkhart Civic Theatre’s production of "The 39 Steps," which opens May 17 and continues through May 25, 2024, at the Bristol Opera House.

BRISTOL — Elkhart Civic Theatre presents “Alfred Hitchcock’s The 39 Steps” from May 17 to 25 at the Bristol Opera House, 210 E. Vistula St.

Written by Patrick Barlow, the 2005 play is based on the 1996 play by Simon Corble and Nobby Dimon.

Four actors play more than 150 characters in the parody, which is based on the 1915 novel by John Buchan and its 1935 film adaptation by Alfred Hitchcock.

Leah Tipton, left, and Collin Szymanski appear in a scene from Elkhart Civic Theatre’s production of "The 39 Steps," which opens May 17 and continues through May 25, 2024, at the Bristol Opera House.
Leah Tipton, left, and Collin Szymanski appear in a scene from Elkhart Civic Theatre’s production of "The 39 Steps," which opens May 17 and continues through May 25, 2024, at the Bristol Opera House.

In “The 39 Steps,” a man with a boring life meets a woman with a thick accent who says she’s a spy. When she is murdered, the man soon finds that a mysterious organization called “The 39 Steps” is hot on his trail in a cross- country manhunt that climaxes in a death-defying finale.

Directed by Demarée Dufour-Noneman, Elkhart Civic’s production stars Collin Szymanski, Leah Tipton, Vincent Bilancio and Craig Knight.

Vincent Bilancio, front, and Craig Knight appear in a scene from Elkhart Civic Theatre’s production of "The 39 Steps," which opens May 17 and continues through May 25, 2024, at the Bristol Opera House.
Vincent Bilancio, front, and Craig Knight appear in a scene from Elkhart Civic Theatre’s production of "The 39 Steps," which opens May 17 and continues through May 25, 2024, at the Bristol Opera House.

Performances are at 7:30 p.m. May 17-18 and 24-25 and at 3 p.m. May 19.

Tickets are $25-$19.

For more information, call 574-848-4116 or visit elkhartcivictheatre.org.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: 'The 39 Steps' opens at Elkhart Civic Theatre