REVIEW! The Talented Mr Ripley UK Tour Richmond Theatre 2025

‘Bold choices, lost voices: The Talented Mr Ripley is as original as it is intriguing'

Attacking Patricia Highsmith’s novel for the stage once more is no mean feat, and Director

and Adaptor Mark Leipacher tackles the task with some great originality in the current UK

tour. The Talented Mr Ripley now boasts a long line of incredible and contrasting interpretations, from the film with Matt Damon to the miniseries with Andrew Scott.

Leipacher’s current production uses new and creative set, lighting and ensemble choices to

cycle through what is now a familiar story.

We are introduced to Tom Ripley (Ed McVey, The Crown) as a clumsy, unsubtle and altogether unlikeable character. Some half-formed and rushed fourth wall breaks littered only the first act, and the audience, given little time to process or sympathise with Tom, were altogether unamused. McVey’s Ripley lacks the quiet charm or sultry mystery that previous Ripley’s have relied on; his character entirely juxtaposes his history as a successful conman, a contextual point that was entirely lost. However, McVey’s strength lies in his ability to seamlessly transition between Tom and Dickie, displaying an impressive command of vocal and physical character.

This pacing issue only continues throughout the play, as we are led through numerous

locations at high speed with an attempt at stylistically minimalist set changes; another choice that entirely undermines the lavish and idyllic lifestyle that Tom subconsciously chases, while we see nothing but a clinically white set piece. Perhaps this minimalism intentionally pointed an audience toward the psychological discomfort that the novel invokes, a level of confusion that reflects the narrative itself, however the unnecessarily fast pacing of scenes fails to explore any psychological or homoerotic tension fully.

The inclusion of physical theatre made for interesting staging, yet was not necessarily

appropriate for an interpretation of Highsmith’s novel. Frequently the ensemble, including

recognisable supporting characters, would appear as crowds, journalists, detectives, and

even birds. Yet throughout the show physicality was clumsy, as fights were choreographed

deliberately understated, often had the actors visibly crawling under the set, and chose a

repeating abstract motif of a slow crossing of one’s arms that had no symbolic relevance.

There were, however, a few moments of promise, particularly the stylistic repetition of both deaths by the actors, and beautifully choreographed moments after the death of Dickie (Bruce Herbelin-Earle) where Tom and Dickie interact in perfect unison. A further choice was to intersperse abstract interludes that flashed into a film set, with shouts of ‘cut’ or ‘another take’ that elevated the play into a self-consciously metatheatrical level that strengthened this interpretation immensely, and a further exploration of these scenes would have been welcome.