REVIEW: THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG is a wild romp of mishaps and mischief

Aug. 17

It’s a classic murder mystery story: there has been an suspicious death at a country manor, everyone is a suspect, and an inspector arrives on the case to find who the culprit is. However, when this play is performed by the accident-prone thespians of The Cornley Drama Society, everything that can go wrong does. In this clever, manic and hilarious piece of mischief theatre, Hamilton’s newest theatrical company, BIG HEARTS little theatre (founded by creative juggernaut Erin Newton) demonstrates all the comedic and anxiety-inducing mishaps that every theatre company loves (and dreads) simultaneously.

There’s an inauspicious sense of things about to go terribly wrong from the moment the audience enters the theatre to find a frantic and frazzled stage manager (Sativa Schmidt) rushing around to finish the set and repair props as her lackluster stage crew meanders about. Schmidt even enlists some audience help, much to her inevitable despair that nothing is ready but the show must go on. Schmidt definitely channels her character well and anyone with stage manager experience watching will feel deeply for her numerous plights.

The Society, fresh from such hits as The Lion and The Wardrobe, summer musical Cat and the budget ridden James and the Peach, is putting on a performance of The Murder at Haversham Manor – a 1920’s murder mystery play, similar to Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap. The cast is headed and introduced by Chris Bean (performed by the always excellent Michael Hannigan), who plays Inspector Carter and serves as the show's director, set designer, costume designer, prop maker, box office manager, press and PR person, voice and dialect coach, and fight choreographer. This production, we are told, is his directorial debut and his determination to see things go smoothly only adds to the foreboding sense that nothing will.

The entire cast and crew must play the show seriously while the chaos unfolds around them. It is a testament to the intense rehearsal process they must have endured to ensure every scripted mishap seemed natural and purposeful. The exaggerated moments, repetitive fumbles and melodramatic delivery only adds to the hilarity, leaving the audience in stitches of laughter. There are plenty of moments where the cast and crew break the fourth wall as the set legitimately crumbles around them and even the live musician (Olivia Purnell) plays up the ridiculousness of the score’s motifs to an annoying effect (again, on purpose). The only small nitpick comes from a few moments being drawn out near the end (in particular the upstaging battle between the stage manager and lead diva) which almost makes the high energy fervour of the show lose its momentum. That being said, with mischief plays it’s hard to tell what’s on purpose and what’s not so you simply have to accept it all as part of the experience.

Director Erin Newton is courageous for selecting such a risky play as the company’s theatrical debut. Newton must certainly have a deep love of mischief theatre with the astounding attention to detail in every technical and physical element within the production. Her effective staging, along with an enormous amount of trust in her ensemble cast and crew, are well-rewarded with heaps of laughter, applause throughout (especially after some harrowing physical comedy moments) and a thunderous standing ovation at the end.

For a new company, BIG HEARTS little theatre have proven themselves capable of great things to come, especially if this is their debut production. I urge you to see The (One Act) Play That Goes Wrong because it must be seen to be truly appreciated, especially if this is your introduction to mischief theatre. It is a wild romp and you will not be disappointed. Don’t miss it.

Remaining performances August 23 and 24 at 7:30 PM at The Zoetic Theatre in Hamilton, ON.

PLAY GOES WRONG TICKETS