Relationships can be murder
Chicago, 1924. Richard Loeb is obsessed with crime. Nathan Leopold is obsessed with Richard. High on adrenaline, they leave a trail of arson, theft, and vandalism in their wake. But Richard wants to take a step further – a step that will test Nathan’s loyalty to the limit. Can they commit the ultimate crime: a perfect murder?
A dark and thrilling musical of masochism and murder, Thrill Me has become a modern classic. Matthew Parker’s previous production for The Hope Theatre received numerous ★★★★★ reviews and its two leads both won the OFFIE Award for Best Male Performance in a Musical 2020.
Thrill Me played to sold out houses at the Jermyn Street Theatre in 2022, gaining a 9 ★★★★★ reviews and a record 6 OFFIE Award nominations, including Best Musical Production and Best Director of a Musical for Matthew Parker.
Matthew won Best Director of a Musical at the 2023 OFFIES Awards Ceremony for his direction of Thrill Me.
Cast
- Nathan Leopold: Bart Lambert
- Richard Loeb: Jack Reitman
- Plus the voices of Dewi Hughes & Bryan Pilkington
Creatives
- Writer/Composer/Lyricist: Stephen Dolginoff
- Director: Matthew Parker
- Musical Director: Benjamin McQuigg
- Producer: David Doyle for Jermyn Street Theatre
- Associate Producer: Benjamin Alborough
- Designer: Rachael Ryan
- Lighting: Chris McDonnell
- Sound: Simon Arrowsmith
- Production Manager: Lucy Mewis-McKerrow
- Stage Manager: Summer Keeling
- Assistant Stage Manager: Jordan Littlewood
- Production Photographer: Steve Gregson
Thrill Me has been around the world since Off-Broadway in 2003 and been performed in 22 countries - but there won’t have been a better production than this
Quite simply superb in every respect
The show is superior musical theatre and we have come to expect nothing less from Matthew Parker and company
Matthew Parker’s direction leaves you gasping for breath, a relentless pushing of plot and characters, allowing the emotions and complexities to take centre stage
A wonderful piece of theatre - it’s definitely a must watch!
Director Matthew directs with a deft touch that makes the piece zing and brings the best out of Lambert and Reitman. He even makes the moving of some large props seem almost balletic
The unanimous consideration for authenticity has produced an environment rich with painful realism
What makes this all totally compelling first of all is the fluid pace of Matthew Parker’s direction…. There is dexterous verbal nuance and an evident physicality throughout
As captivating a piece of theatre as you are likely to see this year… theatre at its glorious and thrilling best
Parker’s production resists casting the audience in the role of voyeaurs, but it does underscore the power of art to refashion and provoke
Matthew Parker's concentrated revival sounds every tone of this undeniably thrilling, chilling killing
Parker doesn’t try to sugar-coat the unpleasantness but he does negotiate a believable, possibly even sympathetic route through the story… Masterclass in handling difficult material
Intense and passionate theatre… (Parker’s) direction allows the text to be punchy and there isn’t a dull moment all evening
This is storytelling of the very highest order and captures the essence of two complex characters in 80 minutes – quite a feat
Matthew Parker’s direction is nuanced and taut, bringing out a tense chemistry in the two actors
Parker perfectly quickens the pace of his production as the net closes in on the increasingly nervous duo… serving up everything you could possibly want from an evening at the theatre
The cast and production team have made sure that justice is done to this extraordinary piece of theatre that never ceases to thrill
Matthew Parker ably directs a pacy and fluid whistle-stop interrogation of the rotten coercive relationship between Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb
Thrill Me is a fascinating study of obsession and codependency… Matthew Parker's tight direction ensures that our interest never flags
An 80 minute two hander like this only works, of course, if the two actors are totally attuned to each other and directed with sensitive intelligence – and this show ticks all those boxes
Riveting performances in a tale of cold blooded murder… It has all been efficiently staged by director Matthew Parker
