The original 1956 film of Jules Verne’s Around the World in 80 Days was truly an epic. Shot in huge screen Todd-AO, the film involved 112 locations in 13 countries, and 140 sets. The cast, including extras, allegedly totalled 68,894 people. So how, you might well ask, could you possibly boil all this down to a small-scale stage production involving one set and just three actors?

Well, it is possible, as this Theatre, Chipping Norton, and Oxfordshire Theatre Company production triumphantly proves. Using an adaptation first performed by the Bristol Old Vic in 2007, director John Terry first introduces Phileas Fogg (Richard Hurst), who is described as “a true English Gentleman — his bow ties are catalogued according to the seasons of the year”. In 1872, Fogg has a bet of £20,000 riding on his boast that he can circumnavigate the globe in 80 days, even if “savages tear up the railway tracks”.

But Fogg needs an assistant, to help him along the way, and to ward off Fix of the Yard (Gareth Cassidy), who is exceedingly keen to take him in for questioning. So he interviews ultra sparky Passepartout (Anna Tolputt, in a trousers role), who is supposedly French. “You don’t have a French accent,” Fogg says suspiciously. “I’ve travelled about a lot,” replies Passepartout, quick as a flash. As the incident-packed journey proceeds, Passepartout proves to be worth his weight in gold — with Tolputt also hilariously doubling up in several other roles: she can surely now claim a new world record for frequency and speed in changing her headgear.

But what of the film’s 112 locations? Admittedly some scenes are omitted, but Alex Marker’s set design is a mir-acle of ingenuity, with bits that fold out and roll down to provide different backdrops. Eamonn O’Dwyer’s excellent score sets the atmosphere in each location too.

Acted with tremendous verve, the sheer inventive-ness employed in this highly entertaining production is mind-boggling. Everyone will have their own favourite scene — mine was the peril-ous voyage home across the Atlantic, with the ship running out of fuel. What’s left to feed the boiler?

Around the World in 80 Days
Touring locally and nationally
Next local dates: Oct 9-12 at different venues. See chippingnortontheatre.com