Shots rang out at the Meadow Brook Theatre and the manhunt has begun in the Tony Award-winning adaptation of the comedic thriller, “The 39 Steps,” which kicks off the beginning of 2011.

“The 39 Steps” runs from Jan. 5-30 at Meadow Brook Theatre on the Oakland University campus grounds.

“The 39 Steps” is an adaptation of the famous 1935 film by director Alfred Hitchcock that was brought to the stage by Patrick Barlow.

Winning two Tony Awards, acclaimed by critics for years, and currently in London and on Broadway, MBT hopes to create similar success on their own stage.

“The 39 Steps” is a story of secrets, love and espionage centered around Richard Hannay, a man with a dull life, who finds himself with a mysterious woman staying at his flat one night.

From the beginning, Hannay becomes curious about the woman with a thick accent who also claims she’s a spy.

Things take a major turn when the following morning, Hannay wakes up to find the mysterious woman dead. Forced to flee, he is followed by the mysterious organization called “The 39 Steps” who are hot on his trail.

One of the challenges artistic director Travis Walter had producing the show was creating a balanced comedic thriller.

“Normally when you do a thriller, it’s a straight thriller,” Walter said. “When you add comedy into it, you run the risk of the audience not following. But I’m excited that people have really enjoyed it and already came back to see it more than once.”

What separates “The 39 Steps” from other Meadow Brook productions is the utilization of a four-person cast, all of whom play multiple characters.

“The four actors play about 120 characters,” Walter said. “The cast members who do play multiple characters did a great job at making the audience believe that they’ve become someone different.”

Playing the character of Richard Hannay is a returning MBT actor, Rusty Mewha, who has been in previous productions such as “Dracula: A Rock Opera” and “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow.”

Also appearing in “The 39 Steps” is Stephanie Wahl (Annabella Schmidt, Pamela Edwards/Margaret McTyte), Rob Pantano (Clown #1) and Kevin Young (Clown #2).

The crew also includes Terry W. Carpenter, stage manager, with set design by Kristen Gribbin and lights by Reid G. Johnson.

Sound and costume design is done by Mike Duncan and Liz Moore, respectively.

Tickets range from $24 to $39 and are available by calling the Meadow Brook Theatre Box office at 248-377-3300 or visiting www.ticketmaster.com

A sign language interpreted performance is scheduled for Wednesday, Jan. 19 at 8 p.m.

For more information, visit www.mbtheatre.com