Pauline Adamek
Center Theatre Group‘s summer hit stage production of Clue is now in its final weeks. You still have until Sunday August 25 to catch a show, with matinees on Thursday, Saturday and Sunday, and 8PM performances Tuesday until Saturday. Purchase tickets here.
Plan to arrive early and challenge your friends to yard and board games on the Plaza! Games are free to play and begin one hour before every performance.
A mansion. A murder. A mystery...
Murder and blackmail are on the menu when six mysterious guests assemble at Boddy Manor for a night they’ll never forget! Was it Mrs. Peacock in the study with the knife? Or was it Colonel Mustard in the library with the wrench? Based on the fan-favorite 1985 Paramount Pictures movie and inspired by the classic Hasbro board game, Clue is the ultimate whodunit that will leave you dying of laughter and keep you guessing until the final twist.
From the press release.
In this one-act, murder-mystery farce, a handful of colorful personalities converge one stormy night at a labyrinthine mansion, Boddy Manor, after each receiving a mysterious invitation. Greeted by the butler Wadsworth and the maid Yvette, the six strangers are each given a pseudonym to maintain confidentiality: “Colonel Mustard”, “Mrs. White”, “Mrs. Peacock”, “Mr. Green”, “Professor Plum”, and “Miss Scarlet.” During dinner, they discover that each of them are being blackmailed by the owner of the mansion, Mr. Boddy. Wadsworth has called the police to arrest Boddy, but Boddy threatens to expose everyone’s secrets if they turn him in. He then presents the six guests with weapons—a candlestick, rope, lead pipe, wrench, revolver, and dagger—and suggests someone kill Wadsworth to protect their secrets before turning out the lights. After a gunshot rings out, Boddy is found on the floor, seemingly dead. Pretty soon a bunch of other characters begin succumbing to a grisly death.
Hilarity ensues.
Throughout this amusing slapstick farce, lightning flashes, thunder crashes, and door bells ring unexpectedly as additional people, such as a stranded motorist and a cop, show up at inopportune moments. There are even some moments that recall the gross-out comedy film Weekend at Bernies where the characters pretend to “animate” some incriminating corpses. Lee Savage’s brilliant scenic design is especially ingenious, with doors that reveal other rooms partially, and then later slide out to reveal more of the room. The transitions from dining hall to foyer to ballroom etc. are handled with as much speed and efficiency as the farcical slapstick itself.
The extremely hardworking cast includes Joanna Glushak as Mrs. Peacock, Tari Kelly as Mrs. White, John Treacy Egan as pompous Colonel Mustard, John Shartzer as Mr. Green, Jonathan Spivey as Professor Plum, Michelle Elaine as the fabulously brassy entertainer Miss Scarlet, Mark Price as Wadsworth the butler, and Elisabeth Yancey as the mansion’s sexy French maid Yvette. Other characters include Alex Syiek as Mr. Boddy (and others), Teddy Trice as an investigating Cop (and others) and Mariah Burks as the hapless Cook (and others).
It’s fast, it’s funny and very physical. The whole show is minutely choreographed with lots of over-the-top reactions, double-takes, frozen moments and intricate, dance-like blocking. John Shartzer as Mr. Green, in particular, pulls off some marvelous physical sight gags. While everyone on stage is giving the performance of their life, Mark Price as Wadsworth probably has the most challenging and energetic job of all, giving a superb performance as the increasingly exasperated butler trying to keep it all together. OR IS HE?!
Plenty of us have gathered around the classic board game trying to deduce whodunnit. Known as Cluedo in the UK and Clue in the States, the original game is a murder mystery for three to six players (depending on editions) that was devised in 1943 by British board game designer Anthony E. Pratt. The object of the game is to determine who murdered the game’s victim, where the crime took place, and which weapon was used. Each player assumes the role of one of the six suspects and attempts to deduce the correct answer by strategically moving around a game board that represents the main rooms of a mansion and collecting clues about the circumstances of the murder from the other players.
A film version based on the board game was released in 1985, while Clue: On Stage was adapted from the film, itself based on the popular board game. Sandy Rustin adapted Jonathan Lynn’s screenplay for the stage, with additional material by Hunter Foster and Eric Price.
Don’t miss this hilarious show!
Clue
Center Theatre Group / Ahmanson Theatre
135 N Grand Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90012
Running time: The performance length is 75 minutes with no intermission.
Performances:
Tuesday, August 20, 2024 – 8PM
Wednesday, August 21 – 8PM
Thursday, August 22 – 2PM
Thursday, August 22 – 8PM
Friday August 23 – 8PM
Saturday August 24 – 2PM
Saturday August 24 – 8PM
Sunday August 25 – 1PM
Cast:
Mariah Burks – The Cook (and others)
John Treacy Egan – Colonel Mustard
Michelle Elaine – Miss Scarlet
Joanna Glushak – Mrs. Peacock
Tari Kelly – Mrs. White
Mark Price – Wadsworth
John Shartzer – Mr. Green
Jonathan Spivey – Professor Plum
Alex Syiek – Mr. Boddy (and others)
Teddy Trice – The Cop (and others)
Elisabeth Yancey – Yvette
Understudies: Greg Balla (Colonel Mustard, Mr. Green, Professor Plum, Mr. Boddy (and others), The Cop (and others)), Alison Ewing (Yvette, The Cook (and others), Mrs. White, Mrs. Peacock), Mary McNulty (Yvette, The Cook (and others), Mrs. White, Mrs. Peacock, Miss Scarlet), James Taylor Odom (Wadsworth, Mr. Green, Professor Plum, Mr. Boddy (and others), The Cop (and others)), Jonathan Spivey (Wadsworth), Teddy Trice (Colonel Mustard) and Elisabeth Yancey (Miss Scarlet)
Additional credits: Scenic Design by Lee Savage; Costume Design by Jen Caprio; Lighting Design by Ryan O’Gara; Sound Design by Jeff Human; Hair and Wig Design by J. Jared Janas; Make-Up Design by J. Jared Janas; Associate Scenic Design: Michael Ruiz-del-Vizo; Associate Costume Design: Brynne Oster-Bainnson; Associate Lighting Design: Nicholas Pollock; Associate Hair and Wig Design: Cassie Janay Williams; Associate Make-Up Design: Cassie Janay Williams; Assistant Lighting Design: Sam Weiser; Lighting Programmer: Jonah Camiel.
Terry Morgan
