A new psychological drama is set to come to Aylesbury’s Waterside Theatre this month.

Strangers on a Train is based on a 1950s novel by author Patricia Highsmith (The Talented Mr Ripley, Carol), later made globally famous by the Alfred Hitchcock film.

Presented by Ambassador Theatre Group and Smith and Brant Theatricals, and directed by Anthony Banks – the team behind the critically acclaimed and phenomenally successful tour of Patrick Hamilton’s Gaslight – Strangers on a Train follows two men in the dining carriage of a train crossing America.

Guy Haines is the successful businessman with a nagging doubt about the fidelity of his wife. Charles Bruno is a cold, calculating chancer with a dark secret.

A daring and dangerous plan develops from this casual conversation, setting in motion a chain of events that will change the two men’s lives forever.

Christopher Harper – currently appearing on the nation’s screens as Coronation Street’s Nathan Curtis in the show’s explosive grooming storyline – plays the charismatic and manipulative Charles, a psychopathic playboy who has a chance encounter with a troubled stranger, Guy – played by Jack Ashton of Call the Midwife.

Hannah Tointon stars as Haines’ fiancée, Anne Faulkner, and is best known for her roles in Mr Selfridge, The Inbetweeners and Hollyoaks.

Director Anthony Banks’ credits include this year’s production of Gaslight starring Kara Tointon and Keith Allen, as well as Dennis Kelly’s DNA Bryony, Lavery’s Cesario and More Light, Lucinda Coxon’s The Eternal Not and Michael Lesslie’s Prince of Denmark.

He said he feels the story “couldn’t be more timely”, adding: “What's exciting about doing Highsmith’s story now is that we're living in a strange time.

“This country has over the centuries lived through many strange times, as indeed has the world in general, but I think most people would agree that over the last few years politically, economically and socially there have been so many seismic incidents.”

Jack Ashton agrees, saying that even though the story is set in the 1950s, it remains resonant for contemporary audiences.

He said: “What's interesting about Patricia Highsmith is how she puts normal people in extreme scenarios and just cranks up the pressure.

“All her characters are stretched to their limits and her stories make you wonder when and where your own breaking point might be.”

Organisers said the “spine-chilling” tale will delight audiences with its marriage of dark wit and edge-of-the-seat tension.

To buy tickets, visit atgtickets.com/Aylesbury or call 0844 871 7607.