The Play That Goes Wrong Review

Theatre Royal, Nottingham – until Saturday 28 August 2021. 

Reviewed by Louise Ford

4****

It’s a disaster…. 

This week’s show at the Theatre Royal is a classic whodunit, Murder at Haversham Manor, performed by the accident prone  Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society. The Society has had a variety of hits over the last few years, as the Director (Tom Bulpett) tells us and they have chosen this play as it has the right number of parts as there are performers, which makes a nice change from some of their earlier offerings. 

Set in the 1920s this slapstick drama has everyone wondering if they will make it to the final curtain. From the outset the audience are invited into the confidence of the hapless crew and players initially to help locate a missing cast member and then to help out in the show (only joking, the Director wont allow it). The sound engineer, Trevor (Gabriel Paul) opens the show from his Duran Duran adorned box. He is called upon throughout the show to provide prompts and at one point to tread the boards himself. 

In the best tradition of a Country House mystery there are red herrings, a sword fight and several plot twists before the final denouement of the murderer. In all of the chaos and confusion i’m not 100% certain who did do it…. 

The real star of the show, for me, was the set (designed by Nigel Hook). When the curtains open it is all gothic manor, think Knives Out, with portraits (he has his father’s eyes) over the fireplace, grandfather clock, the library, revolving doors and of course a chaise lounge. As the show progresses the set starts to disintegrate, from sticking doors, collapsing fireplaces and props falling off the walls, to hilarious effect. The finale is like something out of a Buster Keaton film 

There is a constant stream of silliness and slap stick with the cast playing up to and including the audience in the fun. In particular Tom Babbage (playing both Cecil and Arthur the gardener) who hams it up beautifully and really works those sideburns! The missed lines and mispronunciations by Perkins (Edward Howells) are a real treat. 

The Play That Goes Wrong was written in 2012  by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields of Mischief.  It has won multiple awards over the years including the 2015 Olivier Award for Best New Comedy. This production was directed by Sean Turner 

So it looks as though the pantomime season has started early in Nottingham  (oh yes it has!), a light-hearted evening of mishap and misplaced props which the audience loved and to be honest who doesn’t like a bit of slapstick!