For Valentine’s day, my boyfriend surprised me with tickets to see The Play That Goes Wrong. I didn’t know what to expect beforehand, other than, well, things going wrong. I thought that, knowing this concept, the play wouldn’t be as funny, but I was the person in the wrong for assuming this.
From waiting at the bar fifteen minutes before the show started and being asked by cast members whether I had seen a dog gone by, I knew the play would be interesting. Then, sitting in the second row of the stalls, I was grateful not to be in the first row as an unlucky person from the crowd was asked to be on stage to do some tasks before the show properly started. I was sat there, wishing my boyfriend had been chosen because it would have been absolutely hilarious, although mortifying if I was chosen of course. It was great to see someone from the audience being incorporated into the play, and the audience absolutely loved it, cheering him on.
The play is based on a murder mystery called ‘The Murder at Haversham Manor’. From the very start, the play goes wrong of course, as the actors and actresses constantly struggle to hold up the falling pieces from the set. Be warned, do not take your eyes away for a single second. I made this mistake, and as soon as my eyes were back to looking at the stage after a few seconds, chaos had ensued. Being vigilant in terms of the whole stage is important to; each actor and actress is always doing something, whether this be trying to make sure the set doesn’t come down, or humorous facial expressions. I have to absolutely commend the quickness of the chaos too, and how well thought out it really is, with props and sets controlled to make sure they collapse when needed and do not actually harm the actors and actresses, even though they convincingly sound like they do.
Mischief Theatre also puts on other productions, including The Comedy About a Bank Robbery, and Magic Goes Wrong. I am really interested now in seeing both of these, as is my boyfriend, due to the enjoyable nature of this play.
If you’re looking for a play that is light-hearted and really funny, with this humour created through silly moments of chaos, then get tickets to see this play at the Duchess Theatre. Tickets are currently booking until November 2020.