The Faction's critically acclaimed production of Patricia Highsmith's psychological thriller The Talented Mr Ripley is making a comeback with a tour opening at the Stephen Joseph Theatre next month.
When Tom Ripley meets Dickie Greenleaf, Tom's skills for forging signatures, telling lies and impersonating just about anybody are nothing more than impressive games. But as his friendship with Dickie grows to obsession, Tom's talents have very dangerous consequences.
The Faction breathes fresh life into Patricia Highsmith's blackly comic tale of ambition, escapism, and murder. Highsmith went on to write four more novels about her most famous creation.
This stage version originally premiered in 2015 at the New Diorama Theatre in London where it earned a string of four-star reviews and four Off West End Award nominations, including Best Actor for Christopher Hughes who plays the title role.
In this production, SJT audiences might recognise Scarborough-born actor Christopher York (Dickie Greenleaf) who first performed at SJT in a Shakespeare Schools Festival production ofJulius Caesar 15 years ago. Christopher is also a gifted writer who wrote the SJT production Build A Rocket which won the Holden Street Award at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2018.
The Faction became an Associate Company of the SJT last year and partnered with them on the 2019 workshops for Pericles in Beirut. This is the beginning of a relationship to bring more international work to Scarborough. The Talented Mr Ripley will be the company’s first show to be performed at the SJT.
The tour opens at the SJT and then visits Northern Stage in Newcastle and the Lawrence Batley Theatre in Huddersfield as The Faction continue to introduce their work to audiences in the north, ahead of a European tour date to Switzerland where the author Patricia Highsmith lived.
Directed by Mark Leipacher, the cast is Andre Bullock, Christopher Hughes, Christopher York, Emma Jay Thomas, Lachlan McCall, Marcello Walton and Sophie Spreadbury.
The design team is Holly Piggot (set), Chris Withers (lighting), Fran Norburn (costume) and Max Pappenheim (sound). The producer is Rachel Valentine Smith.
The tour is made possible by the generous support of Arts Council England.
The Talented Mr Ripley can be seen in the Round at the SJT at 7.30pm from 25 to 29 February, with matinees at 1.30pm on Thursday 27 June and 2.30pm on Saturday 29 February. Tickets, priced from £10, are available from the box office on 01723 370541 and online at www.sjt.uk.com.