There is something to be said for being original. When theatre is new, exciting, and cutting-edge, it can feel important. This being said, there is also something about taking the familiar and playing with it. Tropes exist for a reason because quite often the patterns of that story work and don’t beg for reinvention. When these tropes are played with and subverted it can feel as good as new. This is why the movie inspired by the board game, named elsewhere in the world, Clue works so well as a stage play. It is as subverted as you can get, high camp while still being true to the tropes laid down by the masters of the murder mystery before them.
Henry Lawson Theatre’s production of Clue is the very definition of the phrase -constraint is the engine of creativity. Director Rebecca Fletcher has worked wonders with the limitations of the space to stage an impressive show that is full of depth. The stage is clever and visually impactful with creative use of modular stage elements to create spaces and entrances. Fletcher’s design and the team who constructed it have done a fine job at this ambitious set that set the tone for the production. Fletcher’s direction leans into the campy nature of the play, complete with on-the-nose lighting and sound cues. Her choice to swap out bodies for soft mannequins was brilliant and led to some great physical comedy.
This show is an ensemble in the truest sense of the word. Every person on stage plays their role and they need to ensure that their pace stays up and the delivery is sharp. While there were moments where this dipped slightly, I was impressed by how well the whole cast managed with this wordy script. Alexander Smith is an excellent Wadsworth, imposing, dry and with an air of superiority that is perfect for the occasion. Heloise Tolar is sultry as Miss. Scarlet. Giving a sense of being unflappable, Tolar really impressed with her easy banter and timing. Nicole Smith as Mrs. Peacock had slightly less comedic beats, but she made the most of every line she had and made up for what she didn’t with her physicality on stage. Neridah James makes for an unphased Mrs. White. This is a woman who is confident and plotting and James captured that strength. Mitchell Rist surprised me as Colonel Mustard. I have only ever seen him played by an older man, who was curmudgeonly and serious, however, I was really endeared to Rist interpretation which reads as earnest and doddery. Elliot Prophet’s Professor Plum had some of my favourite lines in the play and he made the role his own.
Lesh Satchithananda is a stand-out as Mr. Green. Every moment of physical comedy lands and his delivery is impeccable. Satchithananda easily has the most work to do physically and he makes the most of it. The board game characters aside the ensemble also includes Tayah Gulyas as the maid Yvette who rounds out the antics of the first half very well until she meets an untimely end. While Gulyas doesn’t have the most to do, she creates a strong character and her reactions are brilliant. Holly-Leigh Prophet plays the cook but shines as the Chief of Police, which she seems to be having the most fun with, the pun names are everything. Aurel Vasilescu plays two of the victims and does a great job of distinguishing the characters. Rounding out the cast are Mark Prophet who plays the straight man to the antics on stage, before being disposed on in the most Clue fashion ever and Brianna Grima, whose short appearance in the play is made up for by having the funniest death.
The scale of this show cannot be understated. This is a big cast and a big set on a small stage, but everything works and is done so cleverly. Clue is a classic for a reason and this production more than lived up to it.