"Cluedo"

Nottingham Theatre Royal.

When Miss Scarlett, Professor Plum, Mrs Peacock, Reverend Green, Mrs. White and Colonel Mustard arrive at a country house one dark and stormy evening, they are surprised to find they have all received the same intriguing invitation from Lord Boddy. It soon becomes clear that they all have something to hide as the mystery and hysteria grows and the inhabitants and guests of Boddy Manor are killed off one by one, with a variety of familiar weapons, leaving everyone to wonder, who will be next!

This is a British play, based on an American play, based on an American film, based on a British board game. Confused? wait till you see the play! I love this zany, crazy, fun, frantic, slapstick, high-energy, fast-talking comedy farce; and I did not expect the twists that evolved in Act Two at all.

The play is written by Sandy Rustin with additional material by Hunter Foster and Eric Price and for this UK production, Mark Bell, who also directs the play.

Michelle Collins plays Miss Scarlett and Daniel Casey plays Professor Plum, and while these may be the two names that you may know, the rest of the cast, they are all stars of this hilarious piece of theatre. It is great to see Michelle bring out her comedy skills on stage and, being a big fan of "Midsomer Murders", it was great to see another side of this talented actor.

The remaining cast are Jean-Luke Worrell as Wadsworth, the butler, who was hilarious, not just with the lines he has to deliver but with the whole physicality of the role. From his body movements to his eyes, you were drawn to him. And I have never seen an actor draw out the shutting of a door, or a "death" scene like Jean-Luke. His comedy skills are brilliant.

Laura Kirman, as Yvette, the "French" maid was wonderful with her Franglais accent.

Wesley Griffith, as Colonel Mustard, and what I noticed about Wesley was his hair. For me it seemed to have a life of it's own, and I could not take my eyes off of it. Another brilliant comedy actor.

Etisyai Philip, as Mrs White, comes into her own, comedically, in Act two. i won't spoil it by telling you how!

Judith Amesenga, as Mrs Peacock. Whoever does the make-up and wig for Judith is a miracle worker as Judith herself looks decades younger than her character; this could also be a tribute to Judith's character acting of course.

Tom Babbage, as Reverend Greene. Well, let me state here that Tom's slapstick skills are honed to perfection. His physical comedy skills are perfection. There is a saying that "it is always the quiet ones" or if you know the old adage "Still waters run deep", then both could be aimed at Reverend Green as this character is nothing how you'd expect a man of the cloth to behave. By the way this may, or may not be a spoiler as certain situations, like being the next possible victim, can bring about a difference in a person!

Meg Travers and Harry Bradley also act as the ensemble which involves several other characters.

Both the set and the costumes are designed by David Farley. the set was a work of art as the mainstay was the entrance hall of the massive country pile of Lord Boddy with six doors leading off the main stage. These doors can then be drawn out to reveal other rooms, like the study, the kitchen, the library, the study etc., onto the stage.

The costumes denoted the person themselves with Professor Plum wearing a plum-coloured suit, Miss Scarlett dressed in a gorgeous scarlet outfit, Miss White attired in a white outfit etc etc.

I really must mention Anna Healey, who is the movement director because there is a scene in Act Two where there is a slow-motion section, and I have never seen this carried out with such skill form all the actors. It really did look like the whole scene had been slowed down, as per the movies. The timing was simply incredible.

There are several tongue-twisty moments from some of the actors who did not miss a beat with these parts of the script.

The lighting design by Warren Letton and the sound design by Jon Fiber brought everything else to life, especially with the thunderstorms and lightning.

There were nods to "The Play That Goes Wrong" in parts and at times you needed to check your eyes as it seemed that the person that you could see on stage was not actually the person that was on stage, involving slight deceptions, all very clever stuff.

Even though the time line for this play is 1949, there were some topical themes dropped into the script if you listen hard enough, and a very clever tribute to "Gone With The Wind", which some of the audience acknowledged, and some may just have felt a draught slightly above their head.

As I said, I loved this play to bits and could easily watch this every evening. Whether it is just because the play only lasts a couple of hours with the interval or whether it is the quality of the cast, writing, technical skills etc., this is a play that you can see several times and still find something new to laugh at.

Who knew that murder could be so much fun?

It would be an absolute crime to miss this one!

"Cluedo" is at the Nottingham theatre Royal until Saturday 5 March.