Review: The Talented Mr. Ripley at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre

★★★★

Based on Patricia Highsmith's iconic psychological thriller novel, which also inspired the acclaimed film and Netflix series of the same name, The Talented Mr. Ripley is a new stage adaptation that draws audiences into a world of deadly deceptions and desires. Tom Ripley is a nobody scraping by in New York with forged signatures and white lies but a wealthy stranger could change all that.

Tasked with convincing a wayward son, Dickie Greenleaf, to return to America, Ripley heads to the sun-drenched glamour of 1950s Italy where he is soon seduced by the freedom and wealth of Dickie's life. Fascination quickly turns to obsession, and the lines between truth and lies blur. Ripley’s deceptions spiral into a dark and twisted web of identity theft, violence, and murder.

Adapted and directed by Mark Leipacher, the stage production of The Talented Mr Ripley carries a much faster pace that the Netflix series (starring Andrew Scott). Leipacher also introduces a modern, meta twist, which suggests that Ripley is playing a film version of himself woven into the main plot, presenting a unique take on the material that cuts into the darkness of the storyline, adding a further layer to the character’s complexity.

The simple yet incredibly effective staging (Holly Pigott), which cleverly brings to life various elements including scenes on water, allows audiences to focus most of their attention on the action, and the sharply dark humour of the scripting. Fight scenes (Haruka Kuroda) are bought to life in a gritty and realistic-feeling violence. While the 1950s costuming in all its dapper New York style and Italian casual chic makes for a visually appealing production.

The Talent Mr Ripley features a ten-strong ensemble cast (Christopher Bianchi, Cary Crankson, Leda, Jason Eddy, Lachlan McCall, Holly Sullivan and Aldous Ciokajlo-Squire). Ed McVey (The Crown) leads the show as the charismatic yet dangerous, Tom Ripley, and is accompanied by Maisie Smith (EastEnders, Strictly Come Dancing) as Marge, and Bruce Herbelin-Earle (Free Rein) as Dickie Greenleaf.

The cast as a whole play well together, embodying the fiery tension of the piece with gripping performances. But, it is Ed McVey’s Ripley that is most captivating in his embodiment of one of literature's most intriguing, queer-coded villains. His intoxicating performance with its sharp dialogue and morbid humour, which often breaks the third (and at times, the fourth wall) balances the compelling line between narcissism and self-loathing, becoming increasingly sociopathic as the lies begin to unravel.

Patricia Highsmith’s novel may now be over 70 years old, first publishing in 1955, but stage adaptations such as this are a bold reminder that The Talented Mr Ripley is the blueprint for many contemporary works including the cult-classic Saltburn and the chilling Netflix series, You.

The Talented Mr. Ripley runs at Wolverhampton Grand Theatre until Saturday 25th April.

This review was written following a press invite to the production.