KURIER

Deception wherever you look: „Never trust a woman.“

Vienna’s English Theatre presents Agatha Christie’s „Witness for the Prosecution“.

Expectations are high whenever this masterpiece of manipulated justice is presented. The challenge is to match up to Billy Wilder’s film, starring Marlene Dietrich und Charles Laughton, which everybody knows.

Nevertheless, in his production at Vienna’s English Theatre, Philip Dart successfully creates a courtroom drama full of homour, suspense and spectacular coups de theatre.

The theme of deception is omnipresent in this brilliantly constructed play. In court, just like everywhere else where human beings have to make decisions, there is plenty of opportunity to pull the wool over people’s eyes; but so do our antagonists. Sue Mayes’ set stretches the stage to its limits, in order to switch smoothly from barrister’s office to typical British courtroom.

Katharina Stemberger presents the defendant’s wife; he is accused of murdering an wealthy old lady; as Romaine, she makes full use of a colourful palette, from coquettish to coldly calculating. With her accent-free English she is the chief attraction together with the eloquent and quick-witted defending counsel, Sir Wilfrid Robarts (Robin Kingsland).

Entertainment at its finest – and not just for whodunnit fans.

6. Nov. 2013

Die Presse

Witness for the Prosecution full of amazing Twists of Fate.

Katharina Stemberger delights one and all in the classic Whodunnit at Vienna’s English Theatre.

Katharina Stemberger matches what Marlene Dietrich so brilliantly managed in Billy Wilder’s film: after all, clever, calculating women who appear in an Agatha Christie Whodunnit play leave no one cold. This was precisely the effect on the opening night of „Witness for the Prosecution“ at Vienna’s English Theatre.

Philip Dart directs a fast-moving, subtle drama, especially in the finale, in which Stemberger is able to shine brilliantly. Whilst the rest of the excellent cast is native British, she subtly portrays a German immigrant – our witness for the prosecution who, in contrast to her murder-suspect husband, presents a powerful personality. Why does she accuse him? (…)

Clever Duel of Wits in Court.

The accused reckons he has an alibi and that his wife, Romaine (Stemberger), will corroborate it. The play revolves round her testimony and is enriched by a cast of typical British characters, all of them with different accents: an eccentric judge, an embittered, elderly spinster, a naive housemaid, a pompous prosecutor – each and every one of them exaggerates just to the point at which they remain convincing. The play, which takes place in the defence counsel’s office and in court, has taut dialogues and is rich in rhetoric; the cast master Christie’s brilliant, subtly constructed tour de forces superbly. One quickly forgets the slow pace, inevitable in a 60-year-old play and in the limited space available to designer Sue Mayes; efficiently, she makes the most of the space at her disposal. At Vienna’s English Theatre we experience a form of intimate theatre that has convinced generations before us.

Norbert Mayer
08.11.2013

NEWS

Agatha Christie, compelling.

Regular visitors to German-language theatres will have forgotten that you can still witness a performance like this, namely, one whose sole ambition is to organise the contents in such a way as to be nothing but convincing and entertaining. Philip Dart, who directs, brings precisely these skills to Vienna. Agatha Christie’s criminalistic apotheosis of a loving woman gains from strong dialogue and, above all, from Katharina Stemberger’s presence. Noteworthy: Robin Kingsland and Chris Polick.

H.S.
14.11.2013

Der Standard

Agatha brings out the wigs

Agatha Christie’s whodunnit, Witness for the Prosecution, is primarily concerned with ascertaining who is telling the truth. Right up until the startling end of this evening at Vienna’s English Theatre, star counsel for the defence, Sir Wilfrid Robarts (Robin Kingsland) remains in the dark. Indeed, the final plot-twist at the end of the play is the crux of the piece and must on no account be given away, even though Billy Wilder’s film starring Marlene Dietrich has been canonised.

Even the programme for Philip Dart’s production is full of red herrings. Only one thing can be established, that young Leonard Vole (Chris Polick) stands accused of murdering a wealthy woman. The weight of the evidence against him is massive, whilst the behaviour of Vole’s wife and alibi, Romaine, always cool as a cucumber, remains puzzling, to say the least. Sir Robarts is going to have some job keeping his client away from the gallows.

The production is classic: baroque music opens the proceeedings, lovers of seasoned wood-panelling ought to get all worked-up when they see Sue Mayes’ set. Even the perfectly waved wigs sit just so. Sadly, the esprit of Wilder’s direction is lacking; however, Robarts’ secretary (Clare Scott) and the judge (John Fleming) provide a bit of welcome humour.

Stemberger, nominally star of the evening, blends into the ensemble with suitable detachment and displays tangible emotion towards the end. The remaining actors of this good-manneredly entertaining classic do justice to their parts.

Dorian Waller
18.11.2013