y Sara Castillo
Broadway in Tucson‘s latest play, The Play That Goes Wrong, is anything but wrong. Centennial Hall in Tucson, Az is hosting The Play That Goes Wrong fresh from its Broadway run. This ‘little play that could’ started in a pub in England where co-authors Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields created a whimsical take on the classic Whodunit. After the show got some traction, a big-time Hollywood director by the name of J.J. Abrams, of Star Wars fame, happened to be filming in London, saw their show and its potential. After coming on as Producer, and giving a sizable new budget, The Play That Goes Wrong received Olivier Awards, the West-end version of The Tony Award. After its successful run in London, The Play That Goes Wrong then graced the Great White Way and had tremendous success there. Now this critically acclaimed show is available for one week only in the Old Pueblo.
The Play That Goes Wrong takes place at the Cornley University Drama Society’s production of The Murder at Haversham Manor. Taking on a classic theatre tale in the spirit of Agatha Christie, a beautifully designed set (Nigel Hook) depicts a wealthy mansion at the beginning of the show. Unfortunately, since we already know this show’s run won’t go exactly as planned, Stage Manger Annie (Bianca Horn) and the Lighting and Sound Operator Trevor (Jason Bowen) need to fix a few minor details before the show starts. Be sure to be in your seats at exactly show time, otherwise you might miss the amusing antics of these two talented actors. Once the traditional show of The Murder at Haversham Manor begins, we are introduced to classic murder mystery archetypes: the Inspector played by Manor’s director Chris Bean (Chris Lanceley), the femme fatale Florence (Jacqueline Jarrold), the money grubby relative Robert (Michael Thatcher), the clueless brother Max (Adam Petherbridge), the butler Dennis (Todd Buonopane), and or course, the dead body of Charles Haversham (Chris French).
The title of the show already tells us everything that we need to know as to what we can expect from the following two acts: the play goes wrong. Every actor has their fair share of stories of things that go wrong during any given production; such as set pieces not cooperating, missed lighting and sound cues, confused lines, and there’s always the missing prop or fellow actor. This show takes all of these small mistakes any actor prays the audience doesn’t notice and magnifies them to hilarious affect. At times, it can be panic-inducing as you watch actors struggling to keep the adage ‘the show must go on’ despite anything. And anything can happen onstage, including being distracted and hamming up their charming performance for the audience, like Petherbridge’s character did, or taking a moment to yell at the inappropriate laughter to their very serious play, Lanceley as the director Chris Bean did repeatedly. The interactions between the actress Florence and Stage Manager Annie is particularly hilarious, but it is Chris French’s dead body of Charles Haversham that is the stand out performance. French works masterfully in this comedy where he supposed to be dead and therefore silent, making his performance the best of the night.
Having stage crew members as characters in the show helps to bring a special focus to all those that help behind the scenes but rarely are applauded for their work. Any actor knows that they would be clueless without constant reminders of cues, like places in five (Thank you, five). The behind the scenes get to shine in this show, despite how wrong everything goes. Strong lighting and sound design accompany the show by Ric Mountjoy and Andrew Johnson respectively, and beautiful costume design by Robert Surace helps to showcase characters. The best was having real life stage managers Michael Danek and Suzanne Apicella join the cast for the final curtain call. This truly shows how vital stage managers are to any production, especially with a show like this with so many literally moving parts.
The Play That Goes Wrong takes every actor’s worst nightmare and brings delight to their audience. This slap-stick comedy is meant for all ages and some of the younger crowd may even laugh harder than adults as the style brings to mind silly cartoon antics. Buried deep in the absurdity is a fairly interesting murder-mystery as well, so really it’s a double feature kind of a show. But good luck following the plot dialogue of The Murder at Haversham Manor over the uproarious laughter. This show is a comedy first and foremost, despite what the actors on stage may tell you.
Recommended for all Audiences.
Photos by Jeremy Daniel.
Broadway in Tucson presents The Play That Goes Wrong by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields.
Centennial Hall, U of A Campus, 1020 E. University Blvd. Tucson, AZ 85719
January 14-19, 2020, Tuesday–Thursday 7:30 P.M., Friday 8:00 P.M., Saturday 2:00 PM, 8:00 PM, Sunday 1:00 PM, 6:30 PM
Contact: 1-800-982-ARTS
Tickets: $35-$115
Broadway in Tucson Website
Broadway in Tucson Facebook Page
The Play That Goes Wrong Facebook Event Page
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