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Portrait of a friendship
"The Secret of Sherlock Holmes' at People's Light (1st review)
The blend of brilliance and eccentricity has made Sherlock Holmes one of the most enduring figures in literature. In fact, some folks on the fringes even refuse to accept him as fictional. The character is so vivid that 221B Baker St. in London, often mentioned in the stories and novels as Holmes' residence, is said to still receive many pieces of mail addressed to the great detective.
The original Arthur Conan Doyle stories and novels still hold up as fine entertainment, but some Holmes works by others have been as strange and quirky as Sherlock himself. Basil Rathbone's Holmes battled the Nazis in several wartime B-pictures. And Billy Wilder's uneven 1970 satire, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, tried to plumb the depths of Holmes's ambiguous sexuality.
People's Light & Theatre Company is currently presenting a Doyle-inspired two-man play called The Secret of Sherlock Holmes. The author is Jeremy Paul, one of the writers who worked on the fine BBC-TV adaptations of the Holmes stories featuring Jeremy Brett.
Fortunately, Paul declines to stray too far from the source material, and his approach is unique. Rather than focus on a single mystery, Paul examines the development of the friendship between Holmes and Dr. Watson over the years.
He takes us back to A Study in Scarlet, the first Holmes book, when Watson, newly returned from Afghanistan and rather the worse for wear, takes up lodging with Holmes. He doesn't quite know what to make of his new roommate's extraordinary gifts and quirks.
We follow Holmes and Watson as their attachment deepens, though Watson is appalled by Holmes's drug habit, and he's truly hurt when Holmes fakes his own death at Reichenbach Falls and fails to let Watson in on the secret. This falling-out leads to a huge twist in Act II: the revelation of another secret that provides some insight into Holmes's complicated psyche.
Under Stephen Novelli's capable direction, two longtime People's Light company members perform admirable teamwork in fleshing out these two iconic characters. Peter DeLaurier conveys Holmes's many facets — his brilliance, arrogance and melancholia. Mark Lazar makes Watson suitably amiable while indicating that the man possesses a considerable intellect in his own right.
The sets by scenic designer James F. Pyne Jr. and video designer Lauren Mandilian cleverly use back projection to suggest settings ranging from Holmes and Watson's living room to a railway carriage to a London park.
The Secret of Sherlock Holmes is an ideal summer diversion: not too heavy or profound, but just substantial enough to give the viewer something to chew on afterward.♦
To read another review by Steve Cohen, click here.
The original Arthur Conan Doyle stories and novels still hold up as fine entertainment, but some Holmes works by others have been as strange and quirky as Sherlock himself. Basil Rathbone's Holmes battled the Nazis in several wartime B-pictures. And Billy Wilder's uneven 1970 satire, The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes, tried to plumb the depths of Holmes's ambiguous sexuality.
People's Light & Theatre Company is currently presenting a Doyle-inspired two-man play called The Secret of Sherlock Holmes. The author is Jeremy Paul, one of the writers who worked on the fine BBC-TV adaptations of the Holmes stories featuring Jeremy Brett.
Fortunately, Paul declines to stray too far from the source material, and his approach is unique. Rather than focus on a single mystery, Paul examines the development of the friendship between Holmes and Dr. Watson over the years.
He takes us back to A Study in Scarlet, the first Holmes book, when Watson, newly returned from Afghanistan and rather the worse for wear, takes up lodging with Holmes. He doesn't quite know what to make of his new roommate's extraordinary gifts and quirks.
We follow Holmes and Watson as their attachment deepens, though Watson is appalled by Holmes's drug habit, and he's truly hurt when Holmes fakes his own death at Reichenbach Falls and fails to let Watson in on the secret. This falling-out leads to a huge twist in Act II: the revelation of another secret that provides some insight into Holmes's complicated psyche.
Under Stephen Novelli's capable direction, two longtime People's Light company members perform admirable teamwork in fleshing out these two iconic characters. Peter DeLaurier conveys Holmes's many facets — his brilliance, arrogance and melancholia. Mark Lazar makes Watson suitably amiable while indicating that the man possesses a considerable intellect in his own right.
The sets by scenic designer James F. Pyne Jr. and video designer Lauren Mandilian cleverly use back projection to suggest settings ranging from Holmes and Watson's living room to a railway carriage to a London park.
The Secret of Sherlock Holmes is an ideal summer diversion: not too heavy or profound, but just substantial enough to give the viewer something to chew on afterward.♦
To read another review by Steve Cohen, click here.
What, When, Where
The Secret of Sherlock Holmes. By Jeremy Paul; Stephen Novelli directed. Through August 8, 2010 at People’s Light & Theatre Company, 39 Conestoga Road, Malvern. (610) 644-3500 or www.peopleslight.org.
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