The company of “The Play That Goes Wrong,” Photo by Jeremy Daniel.
I would wager that most people have seen at least one show before and even a fair few have been in a show. What all of these people know is that there is a specific magic to live theatre and that magic is very much tied to the unpredictability of the craft. Even when a show is great, it is rarely the exact same performance from night to night which is part of the fun and excitement. But what if something goes wrong? Almost every person who has been onstage likely has a story of when something went awry—dropping a line, a prop wasn’t where it was supposed to be, a piece of the set broke, an unexpected injury, etc. What if there was a performance where EVERYTHING went wrong? That scenario is examined to hilarious effect in “The Play That Goes Wrong” now playing at the Kennedy Center.
…one of the funniest things I have ever seen…It simply must be experienced.…do yourself a favor and check it out before it’s gone.
The premise of this show is a “play within a play.” The fledgling Cornley University Drama Society is seeking to present the murder-mystery “The Murder at Haversham Manor.” It’s a classic Christie-esque story of a body found in a spooky English country estate, with members of the household pointing fingers at one another. Seems simple enough, right? However, Cornley’s Drama Society has had a bumpy past. Club president Chris Bean (Matt Harrington) does his best to scrape together a cast and act in almost all of the production roles—in addition to playing Inspector Carter in the show. He is joined by Robert Grove (Peyton Crim)—who takes himself very seriously as an actor—playing the best friend of the murder victim, Thomas Collymore. His sister and the fiancé of the deceased, Florence Collymore, is brought to the stage by the expressive Sandra Wilkinson (Mara Davi). The cast is rounded out with Max Bennett (Alex Mandell) playing brother of the victim, Cecil Haversham, and loving up his new found attention on stage; devoted butler and friend of the deceased, Perkins (Bartley Booz as Dennis Tyde), who tries his best, though the larger words throw him a bit; and Jonathan Harris (Joseph Anthony Byrd) as the murder victim (who is mostly lifeless, almost), Charles Haversham. The actors are joined by two crew members, Annie Twilloil (Kai Heath) and Trevor Watson (Akron Watson), who end up spending a bit more time onstage (and unconscious) than they were expecting.
“The Play That Goes Wrong” opened on Broadway at the Lyceum Theater in 2017 and ran for two years to rave reviews. About a month after it closed on Broadway, it moved Off-Broadway, where it still runs to this day. It is also in its eighth year in London’s West End; has toured all over the US and the UK; and has been licensed around the world. An offshoot, “Peter Pan Goes Wrong,” just closed on Broadway after a successful run, and is now headed to the UK for a tour and limited West-End run. The “Goes Wrong” series has also been featured on television, with BBC specials “Peter Pan Goes Wrong” and “A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong,” as well as their series “The Show That Goes Wrong.” The original Broadway production of “The Play That Goes Wrong” has won numerous awards including a Tony for Best Set Design, the Broadway.com Audience Choice Award for Best Play, and the Theatre Fans Choice Award for Best Play. The West End production has also won an Olivier Award for Best New Comedy and the 2014 WhatsOnStage Award for Best New Comedy.
Anyone who has the pleasure of seeing this show will understand all of the above accolades. “The Play That Goes Wrong” is truly one of the funniest things I have ever seen. While you don’t need to be a performer to find this production both hilarious and impressive, it certainly enhances the experience. This cast is an incredibly tight unit, not only with their scripted comedy, but also with the physical gags, which are almost insanely intricate. The experience begins as soon as you enter the theater, with a sound booth covered in Duran Duran posters. You can also see some “crew” members working on the set, even requesting some assistance from an audience member. After some light calamity, the curtain is drawn and Cornley University Drama Society president Chris Bean makes an opening speech referencing their dramatic next door neighbor at the Kennedy Center—”The Lion King.”
Not only is the comedic timing of the dialogue absolute perfection, the physical comedy in this show is some of the best I have ever witnessed. Anyone who had done physical comedy knows how challenging it is, and each and every member of this cast makes it look effortless. Davi in particular stuns in this area, notably in a scene where she is being lifted out of a window and it’s like there are no bones in her body. Work like this can be dangerous if done irresponsibly, but this cast is professional, though their characters are certainly the opposite. Crim’s booming baritone helps deliver his lines with aplomb, as well as his rising exasperation with his fellow performers. One of my favorite ongoing bits was done fantastically by Booz. Not being the most studious member of the club, he writes some of the larger words in his lines on his hands, and doesn’t bother to learn their pronunciation in advance. Mandell charmed as two characters, but in both he was unable to contain his thrill of receiving laughs and applause. Another hilarious running gag was delivered by the murder victim himself, Byrd, who just kept being seen as, well, alive. Perhaps my favorite moments were when Heath had to step in to help after an accident and the chaos that ensued. Watson was also fantastic as the Duran Duran-loving stagehand and Harrington held the whole thing together as their long-suffering leader. His riffs with an audience member who was trying to “help” when he could not find a prop was a particular highlight.
To give any more details about the events of this show would do it a disservice. It simply must be experienced. I cannot overstate how much I enjoyed this production. Seriously, do yourself a favor and check it out before it’s gone. It’s so wrong, it’s right!
Running Time: Approximately two hours with one 20 minute intermission.
“The Play That Goes Wrong” runs through August 13, 2023 at the Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater, 2700 F St., NW, Washington, D.C. 20566. For more information and tickets, go online or call the Box Office at (202) 467-4600; Toll-Free:(800) 444-1324.
