This show was a hit on Broadway despite coming from un-famous origins with no “stars” — the script by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields is a wonderful spoof on the classic whodunit with actors’ nightmares woven cleverly throughout. It is a Tony and Olivier Award–winning comedy.
Note the show-within-a-show aspect as “The Murder at Haversham Manor” presented by the Cornley University Drama Society has a fun faux program included within the actual program. The actors’ real bios appear in later pages. It’s fun to arrive early and witness stagehands and techies fretting over set issues, and searching for a missing dog.
Adam Carlson shines as Chris Bean, the unctuous director of this “drama society" — who also plays the officious Inspector Carter, trying to figure out whodunit, sharing great composure and timing with John Lerma as the corpse’s brother. I also loved Quinn Kelly as Butler Perkins, with his mispronounced lines written on his hand. Sarah Hayner is a delight as the put-upon stage manager trapped into understudying the glamorous and gushing Florence (Anasti Her) after the set knocks her out of commission. Rich Kopitsch is a hilariously abused corpse, and also did fight choreography for the ladies, since by the time Anasti regains consciousness, Sarah has evolved from tentative to tenacious in playing her role. Ian Whipp bumbles appropriately through his bad-actor roles as Cecil and Arthur the Gardener — and Steve Lee does not escape the mayhem as Trevor the techie in search of his lost Duran Duran CD set,
Don’t miss this slapsticky confection — but be warned it might prompt more than your usual occurrence of “actors nightmares.”
The Play That Goes Wrong continues April 22, 28, 29 at 8pm and April 23, 30 at 3pm
Tickets at http://lebowskycenter.com