MY first visit to the Little Theatre in Dunstable on Thursday was an absolute delight.
Amateur dramatics group Dunstable Rep were performing The Talented Mr Ripley, and talented really is the best word to describe their production.
All the cast members gave fantastic and flawless performances – Justin Doherty’s confused, conniving and eventually murderous Tom Ripley was so believable it was creepy.
The group bravely tackled not just American accents but Italian ones too, and pulled them off with no problems at all, which is always a relief for the audience.
It’s quite a complex play to take on, and having not seen a version of it before I was impressed with how easily I was able to follow it.
This is largely down to director Alan Clarke, who admitted it was ‘without question the most challenging I have had to direct ever.’
Excellent use was made of the set, and scenes were smoothly and cleverly set up.
It was a wonderful evening of high-quality, gripping drama and personally I can’t wait for the Rep’s next production in July, The 39 Steps.