Review: THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG: A Triumphant Disaster!

If you need a prescription for winter blues, get to the Omaha Community Playhouse and laugh yourself red in the face with THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG. I dare you to not get caught up in its zany, madcap shenanigans. It is two hours of nonstop fun!

This 2012 farce created by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields of the British Mischief Theatre Company was founded by a group of students from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). I can only imagine how much fun they had putting this absurdity together. It won Best New Comedy at the 2015 Laurence Olivier Awards, as well as a 2017 Tony Award and Drama Desk Award for Best Scenic Design in its Broadway production.

There’s a reason for these scenic awards. The set has a life of its own. You’ll be constantly surprised by the activity of the set itself, my favorite being the mantlepiece. Scenic Designer Cody Tellis Rutledge tackled a big task when he developed a set that could safely fall apart and be rapidly reconstructed. The result is masterful.

Directed by Omaha veteran Susan Baer Collins with Assistant Director Justin Parsley, the cast of eight romps and rolls through their own theatre company production of the Whodunit, “The Murder at Haversham Manor.” Before the show begins, be sure to keep an eye out for cast member antics throughout the theatre and read through the Cornley University Drama Society playbill with their cast bios. These are funny in themselves!

The story begins with a dead body. The eve of his engagement party with fiancee Florence Colleymoore (Lauren Krupski), Charles Haversham (Giovanni Rivera) is discovered splayed over a chaise lounge. Was it suicide? Or was it murder? Inspector (Max Monahan) is called in to investigate in a blinding snowstorm. Charles’ brother, Cecil (Steve Krambeck), is secretly carrying on with Florence. Could it be him? Maybe it was Florence herself, seeking to end her engagement to Charles and marry his brother? Was it Florence’s overly protective brother and Charles’ best friend Thomas (Kevin Barratt)? Or was it Perkins (Jacob Roman) who seems to be constantly on set? One of these characters is a murderer. Meanwhile, the light and sound guy (Brendan Brown) manages—or mismanages- the musical cues and lights that signify high drama.

While playing out the story the actors constantly miss cues, mispronounce words, or misjudge distances. The physical humor will satisfy all those who appreciate slapstick, while the odd verbal, facial, and behavioral quirks will tickle those who find humor in the unexpected.

Max Monahan starts off the evening with a director’s introduction which includes describing his prior budget challenged productions which required abbreviated performances, such as “Cat,” and “The Lion and the Wardrobe”. Evelyn Hill, stage manager and stand-in for Florence, is hilarious with her unique and jerky movements as she refuses to relinquish the stage back to Florence. Steve Krambeck delights in each of the two roles he plays, breaking character when he revels in audience approval. Giovanni Rivera just can’t stay dead, becoming a very funny corpse indicated by his crossed arms. Lauren Krupski earns belly laughs as her seemingly boneless body is hauled out a window or stuffed into a grandfather clock. Jacob Roman appeals with his straight faced murdering of the English language. Kevin Barratt’s well rounded performance shows both his physical comedic ability and silliness as he exaggerates his reactions to sipping spirits…the wrong kind, of course. The entire cast is a crazy bunch that works together beautifully in enacting what is most likely to be the funniest show in town.

There are too many great bits to describe and I wouldn’t want to ruin the surprise, so do yourself a favor and grab a ticket to see this side splitting production!

The show runs on the Hawks Main Theatre from January 26-February 18, 2024 at 7:30 pm Wednesday-Saturday with a 2:00 matinee on Sundays. There will be an audio-described performance for those who are visually impaired on Saturday, February 3 at 7:30 pm and an American Sign Language-interpreted performance on Saturday, February 17 at 7:30 pm.

Tickets are available at TICKETOMAHA.COM or at the OCP Box Office (402) 553-0800.

Photo Credit: Colin Conces (Left to Right: Brendan Brown, Evelyn Hill, Lauren Krupski)

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