REVIEW: Peter James thriller Picture You Dead opens in Worthing
Crime thrillers lend themselves well into being turned into stage plays, in my humble opinion.
And when you’re using the work of master crime writer Peter James to create said play, the results are likely to be excellent.
Case in point is Picture You Dead, which started a week-long run at Connaught Theatre in Worthing last night (Tuesday, July 15).
My friend and I were there, along with a fairly full audience, to see the seventh Peter James book to be adapted for the stage.
Picture You Dead sees Peter James’ famed character DSI Roy Grace investigate a cold case that leads him to the world of fine art. An unsuspecting couple unwittingly buy a potentially long-lost masterpiece in a car boot sale, and discover their dream find is about to turn into their worst nightmare and only Grace can stop them from paying the ultimate price.
Unlike a couple of other Peter James plays I’ve seen, this one is less dark. I really enjoyed the more farcical elements to it, allowing for some comedic skits, and the way it let the actors show a lighter side to the characters.
The only thing I would say is that I was never on the edge of my seat, like you often would be during a crime thriller, but it was probably better for my nerves that way.
Having almost completed a UK tour of the show, the cast’s performance was really polished. Ore Oduba (my favourite ever Strictly champion!) was brilliant as the pompous art collector Stuart Piper, and Jodie Steele was deliciously evil as heartless villain, Roberta Kilgore.
I also really enjoyed seeing George Rainsford bring DSI Roy Grace to life again, having seen him in the role a couple of years ago in Wish You Were Dead.
What’s always lovely as a Sussex audience is the references to villages and towns we’ve all heard of and probably been to. Peter James is famously from Brighton, and his books are littered with mention of the town and surrounding area. Picture You Dead is no different, and it was nice to hear Lancing College, Horsham, Wivelsfield, Patcham and more mentioned.
The full cast features Ben Cutler as Harry Kipling, Gemma Stroyan as Bella Moy, Adam Morris as Oliver De Souza and Sean Jones as Archie Goff. I couldn’t fault any one of them, and it made for a very enjoyable night of theatre.
For tickets, see https://wtm.uk/events/picture-you-dead/