This weekend, the theater department of Saint Mary’s will present “The Play That Goes Wrong” — they do everything right.
The show starts right when you enter the theater. The “tech crew” wanders through the auditorium, asking audience members if they’ve seen a missing Duran Duran CD and even asking people to come on stage to help “fix the set.” Then, the “director” of the production, Chris, comes out and welcomes the audience to the Drama Society of Sacred Sisters Polytechnic College’s production of “The Murder at Haversham Manor.”
Unfortunately, everything starts to go awry almost immediately. Mistaken props, doors that jam and broken mantel pieces are just a few of the issues that the Drama Society has to deal with. Half the set falls, to the point where the cast has to hold up props with their teeth, and the detective is forced to “write down” clues on a vase with a set of keys. One of the actors is basically doing sign language to remember her lines. One of the actors even faints halfway through the show and is carried off stage by several crew members.
The show's interactive nature is a crucial element that keeps the audience both engaged and entertained. The performers' seamless incorporation of the audience adds an extra layer of excitement and spontaneity, making each performance unique and memorable. Even during intermission, the entertainment continues. It's also riddled with crew members having issues. From getting tangled in cords to throwing beach balls into the audience, the tech crew just can’t seem to get their stuff together. All of it is hilarious, and it’s a testament to the ensemble that they kept me entertained long enough to forget to use the restroom during the intermission.
Julia Zusi's performance as the director/inspector is a standout, and her Irish accent is just as impressive as it was in “The Seafarer” last spring, further enhancing the audience's sense of being part of the performance.
There were more spit takes than I would have liked; they’re good spit takes, but I just find them gross. The sword fight was great and so was the prop work in general (even if the props kept breaking). The set was incredibly detailed, and I would love to know how so many parts of it can “break” so realistically and be reset to break again the next night. Though I did sometimes find it hard to see what was an actually mistake and what was staged, I guess that’s less of a problem and more of a testament to the actors’ ability to pretend like everything's fine no matter what happens.
Although a play going “wrong” feels like a concept that could get old quickly, it never does. They always know how to take it up a notch to the point where I was coughing from how much I was laughing.
The show will be performed Friday and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. as well as Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in the O’Laughlin Auditorium at Saint Mary’s. Tickets are free for students but must be reserved in advance.
