By Liz Christensen
And Then There Were None, On Pitch Performing Arts’ production staged at Pitched Perfectly Studios in Layton, is an engaging ride through comedy, mystery, suspicion, and suspense. If you are looking for a seasonal thrill without the gore, occult, or sex that typically accompany fall drama and Halloween, consider this classy take on one of the world’s best Whodunnits by one of the world’s greatest mystery writers—Agatha Christie.
Adapted for the stage by Agatha Christie in 1943 from her best-selling novel, now printed under the same title, And Then There Were None is a suspenseful mystery with a killer twist at the end. Don’t worry–no spoilers here. A mysterious host lures eight guests to an island, stranding them with two servants, so the guests can be killed off one by one in parallel with the details of a morbid children’s poem. Christie claimed it was her most difficult story to write, and it is arguably her greatest masterpiece. A brilliant version appeared onscreen in 1945, but the stage adaptation offers the opportunity for enhanced tension and suspense through the intimacy of live theatre.
Director Carolyn J. Stevens’ skillful blocking was particularly impressive in two areas. Ten actors on a unit set in a small venue can get congested, but nearly all the staging was fluid and dynamic without any unnatural maneuvers. In less capable hands, the audience would have suffered from not knowing whom to look at or where to look, but Stevens’ direction and misdirection allow you to comfortably digest the key points and be surprised with what you are rightly supposed to miss. Stevens’ performed directorial magic. You’ll want to see the show a second time to track certain character, prop, and story elements under the knowledge you get from the surprise twist at the end. Even knowing all the spoilers, I still couldn’t catch every “sleight of hand” I expected to see due to the deft staging and execution.
Stevens’ direction is helped by the clever set design of Brandon Stauffer who utilizes every playable space in the small venue and creates the feel of a much grander interior than the square footage would indicate. I particularly enjoyed the lovely details with the fireplace and mantel. A poem and ten figurines are central to the plot and Stauffer’s large design and placement of these items upstage center contributed effectively to the suspense and build of the show.
The first characters we meet on the island are the staff, Mr. and Mrs. Rogers (Curtis Waite and Jami Blundell, respectively) and the boatman Narracott (Anya Lewis). Not the most interesting characters Christie creates in the piece, and tasked with imparting a lot of important exposition, Waite, Blundell and Lewis thankfully start the show off with clarity and a brisk pace. The first two guests to arrive are Vera Claythorne (Dede Williams) and Philip Lombard (Peter Christensen). From the get go it is clear Christensen is having fun with his role, and he sweeps up the audience in his delight. I defy you not to enjoy his portrayal of Captain Lombard. Williams successfully navigated her character’s evolving relationship with Christensen, and made believable Vera’s more erratic moments.
Three characters have been cast gender-swapped, but it is the choice to cast Felicity Aaron as A. Marston that is truly brilliant. Her womanhood adds depth and interest unique and utterly fitting to a character I would never have considered to cast female before. When played by a male actor, Marston’s dialogue is laced with innuendo. Aaron keeps the lines true to his teasing and devil-may-care attitude, but removes the constant undercurrent of sex. She finds a variety of other motivations and subtexts, delivering a lively performance. Every twist she puts on her lines to suit them to her character keeps Marston’s personality intact and true, but the novelty gripped me. Her charisma is a refreshing departure from the gender stereotypes of the period and a perfect casting match.
Other gender-reversed characters include Lewis’ Narracott and Dr. Armstrong (April Daw). Neither casting change adds much to development of the character, nor does the script make either change awkward. Daw’s commitment to a recurring bit about Armstrong’s breathing was a nice comedic touch.
Emily Brent (Erika Roskelley), Sir Lawrence Wargrave (Kenneth Hadlock), and General Mackenzie (Dennis Bergendorff) join Armstrong as characters of age and respectability, though Roskelley was clearly much younger than her role. Despite the visual discrepancy, her manner and bearing are spot-on for the character. Emily Brent is a character the audience is not meant to like, and Roskelley is faithful to the portrayal without crossing over into the unbearable. Hadlock and Bergendorff are convincing in their portrayals of diametrically opposed characters. Bergendorff gives his best performance when Mackenzie is revealing and vulnerable, Hadlock is most commanding when Wargrave is simultaneously leading and concealing. Jaxon Floyd as William Blore is a natural. His physical grace is perfectly paired with his easy line delivery. Floyd seems in his element from top to bottom. I also really liked his hair (real) and moustache (fake, I think).
Sound design by Charlene Adams provided perfectly calibrated pre-show, intermission, and post-show music, as well as an excellently chosen sound effect regarding a “bear.” The show starting in silence made me a bit uncomfortable, possibly an intentional choice given the content and tone of the play. The cast performed without microphones, and it is a credit to their projection and ensemble awareness that no lines were lost, not even ones delivered over the top of the ad-lib group reactions and hubbub that the script calls for. Williams’ voice carries particularly well throughout the evening. The cast’s dialect delivery was inconsistent, and a few line stumbles occurred early on, perhaps opening night jitters.
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Amanda Larsen’s costume design looks to have been built, rented, and scrounged, with the best ensemble look occurring in the second half of Act I when the characters “dress for dinner”. Some of the costumes in Act II blurred my sense of time and place in the period, but given the resources available in community theatre costume design, I was impressed with Larsen’s coordination of each character within the ensemble to create cohesive looks.
Other technical aspects worth remarking on are the practical food and drinks, a necessary touch with the audience seated so closely, and the difficult but essential lighting look in Act II scene 3 when the careful masking and revealing of a dead body must be achieved through lighting. The abrupt use of electric candles as props could have been smoothed out by introducing them earlier, but nonetheless, the important moment was beautiful and effective. No credit was given in the program for property or lighting design.
The venue is small, only 56 seats in the house, and with general admission seating and not enough height change between rows, arrive when the house opens at 7:00 PM to select seats with the best available view. The rows of padded folding chairs were comfortable and provided sufficient leg room.
With ever-increasing options for live entertainment in Davis and Weber Counties, Layton deserves and has found a worthy place for community theatre in OPPA. Its rousing and carefully crafted production of And Then There Were None is a harbinger of quality and a comfortable embodiment of classic Fall entertainment. Billing itself as Layton’s only live theatre, On Pitch Performing Arts (OPPA!) has been in Layton for a year with its 2017 season including four mainstage shows. Five mainstage shows have been announced for the 2018 season. With children’s shows, showcases, and educational opportunities offered, OPPA is certainly a production company catering to children; but with gun play, allusions to smoking, pervasive drinking, extended references to murder, and a few dead bodies onstage, And Then There Were None is not the show to bring your littles to see. Expect the kind of British cursing you’d hear from Ron in Harry Potter. My twelve-year-old son accompanied me to opening night having read the play twice before, (he’s a huge Christie fan). To the production’s credit, my detail-oriented son was impressed with how the cast pulled off the “sleight of hand” moments the plot calls for while he was specifically looking to catch the cast in those movements. He even admitted to being stressed near the end of the play, even though he knew how it was going to turn out. Well done, OPPA; that’s why we come. This is a wonderful show and my son and I highly recommend you attend OPPA’s And Then There Were None.
On Pitch Performing Arts presents And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
Pitched Perfectly Studios, 1558 W 700 N, #8 Layton, UT 84041
Oct. 26-28, Nov. 2-4 7:30 PM
Tickets: $12 and up
Contact: 385-209-1557
On Pitch Performing Arts Facebook Page
And Then There Were None Facebook Event
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