Sherlock Holmes The Last Act
The year is 1916.
Drawn from two years of Sussex retirement for the funeral of his friend, Dr Watson, Holmes returns to Baker Street to resolve ‘the last act’ of his epic career.
A theatrical evening then unfolds, with fourteen characters, all played by Nigel Miles-Thomas in a tour de force performance.
Cross-examinations, heated arguments between Holmes and Watson, and all manner of comic and serious interactions, between many famous Conan Doyle characters.
As the play concludes the great detective reveals a shocking secret.
Written by Conan Doyle expert David Stuart Davies, directed by award-winning Gareth Armstrong.
“Nigel Miles-Thomas plays Holmes with magical candour. Brilliant, Unmissable”
***** (Noho Arts)
“A Classy Holmes”
**** (The Daily Mail)
“There is nothing elementary about this production, top class”
*****(Glam)
“A Firework display of Acting virtuosity”
***** (Theatre Weekly)
Glamadelaide.com.au
“Elementary my dear Watson”
“The game’s afoot”
The above two quotes are from the mouth of English fiction’s first consulting (today we would say ‘private’) detective, Sherlock Holmes, and from the pen of the one and only Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Holmes, Dr John Watson, Inspector Lestrade and of course the ‘Napoleon of Crime’, Moriarty have lasted as Mystery devotees’ companions for around 137 years.
Set in 1916 at Dr Watson’s funeral, Conan Doyle expert David Stuart Davies’ play Sherlock Holmes: The Last Act takes us back to the day Holmes and Watson met at 221B Baker Street (“You have been in Afghanistan, I perceive”), and then, keeping a constant speed up, moves along as swift and sure as a Victorian steam train to the funeral and a little beyond. Using snippets from some of Doyle’s novels and short stories and fleshing the great detective out with perceived back story, Davies’ script becomes an imagined biography. This work of fiction shows us the ‘real’ man perfectly.
Many actors have graced the big and small screens, and even stage, as Mr Holmes. Perhaps the most famous being Basil Rathbone and Benedict Cumberbatch. But now, let us add another shining star to the fray. As the great detective, British actor Nigel Miles-Thomas is brilliant. Having the ram-rod bearing, dark wavy hair, the perfect aquiline nose and a deeply rich, sonorous voice, Miles-Thomas is Holmes from the get-go, convincing the audience that the detective is real flesh and blood and not the creation of a writer. This is no mean feat, especially when the actor has to portray other characters just as convincingly. But Miles-Thomas wears it all like a very familiar deer-stalker. His is a top-class act from a top-class actor.
If you are a fan of Sherlock Holmes, this is a must-see production. If you are not, but a fan of stunning acting, then this is still a must-see production.
Reviewed by Brian Godfrey
