Anything That Can Go Wrong Will Certainly Go Wrong.

Consider Murphy’s Law

Murphy’s Law states that anything that can go wrong will go wrong. It could just as easily be the Cornley University Drama Society’s Law, as that worthy group has been subject to the law, quite possibly since its inception. 

Lacking funds and actors in the past, along with any sense, they have produced plays such as Cat, and James and the Peach (or James, Where Is Your Peach?). In a stroke of luck, someone apparently lacking taste left them a substantial bequest making it possible to produce a murder mystery a la Agatha Christie’s Mousetrap called The Murder At Haversham Manor with a full cast and an English manor set. So it begins…

The Play That Goes Wrong is a broad farce and a play within a play, with a plethora of physical comedy, props gone missing, set pieces having minds of their own, actors hamming it up, dropping lines or repeating lines or being one line off in their dialogue, tech people acting as props or being recruited to play a part. It is hysterically funny from beginning to end with barely a breath between laughs

Success All Around

It takes very talented people to successfully mount a show like this, and this production is very successful. The precision required to make all the things that go wrong actually go wrong at the right time, takes a tremendous amount of creative talent. The technical crew assembled by Directors Michael Galante and Adriano Gatto (who also directed the fights), are certainly up to the task. Set Design is by Dyan Burlingame, with Lighting Design by Brian Cavanagh, Sound Design by Geoffrey Tocin, Props Design by Donny Woodward, and Technical Direction & trick creation by Chris Cavanagh. Dialect Coach is Megan Callahan, assisted by Brenden Didio. They have joined all the elements together so well that everything goes wrong beautifully and with perfect timing.

Speaking of perfect timing, the cast excels in that department. They over act their hearts out while being subjected to one disaster after another, often in outrageously funny and difficult physical circumstances. They are knocked unconscious, fall from heights, sword fight without swords, are almost asphyxiated in a faulty elevator. That is just a smattering of what happens to the characters in the play, as the actors soldier on no matter what ridiculous or dangerous event occurs. 

Brian Mysliwy as Chris introduces us to the group and the play. (He later plays the harried detective, Inspector Carter). He is immediately nonplussed as the spotlight keeps moving. But that was not the first thing that went wrong. Alexandria Watts as Annie, and Afrim Gjonbalaj as Trevor, two of the tech people, experienced some difficulties prior to the opening, his having to do with Duran Duran. Later, Annie has several major dust-ups with Florence, (played to the hilt by Kelly Meg Brennan), the queen of striking a pose, who was engaged to the very active corpse Jonathon Haversham, played by Kodi James, who cannot seem to remember when and if he reappears. Her brother Robert played by Don Gervasi in traditional jodhpurs and stiff upper lip is no slouch in pose-striking, but is an amateur compared to Steve Copps as Cecil Haversham, younger brother of the deceased and a man in love with his image and so so so much wishes that you will be, too. There must be a butler, of course. Jacob Albarella is that personage, Perkins, who struggles mightily with correctly pronouncing words of more than two syllables. They all play their roles with great panache, and one hopes, no serious injuries.

Simple Fun

What you see is what you get in The Play That Goes Wrong. There is no subtext or deeper meaning, no fall from grace and redemption. There is not any meaning at all, in the dramatic sense. It is simple fun, a quality often lacking in our lives these days. The technical know-how and acting chops that went into creating this production for our “simple fun” is a gift and one to treasure. It has been on stage in London since 2012 and likely will continue for some time to come. It will only play at the D’Youville Kavinoky until March 19th, so give yourself a treat, leave your worries at the door, and prepare to be delighted.