"Portrait Of A Murder" by Liz Turner.

Riverside Drama Company.

Duchess Theatre, Long Eaton.

With this being something completely new, written by Riverside Drama Company's very own Liz Turner, I knew very little of what this was about except that it's a thriller written in the style of one of my favourite thriller writers, Agatha Christie.

Sir Henry Fitton, war hero and successful businessman, had managed to make a lot of enemies throughout his life. On the evening in question they're all gathering at his country house, to celebrate the unveiling of the portrait of Fitton's wife, at her birthday dinner.

Seven guests, all with good reason to hate him, what could possibly go wrong? And when it does, can the "by the book" DI Prendergast, and young and ambitious WPC Bates, solve the crime?

Liz Turner's play is one of the best thrillers that I've seen in a very long time. She has created every character in this play to stand out from the others and as the Director, she has chosen a brilliant cast of actors to bring out the very best in her characters.

It's a wordy script, and even though there were a few prompts from the wings, that took nothing away from the wonderful job that her cast has done. Ms Christie would have been proud of the various stories and back stories that emerged throughout the play. Listen carefully to the words that the characters deliver and you may even pick up a few hints to the murderer, especially if you have your logical thinking head on!

Sir Henry Fritton is played by Jonathan Greaves, an actor who has one of the best voice projections in local theatre today. You could hear every word and syllable that Jonathan uttered. He makes Fritton a completely unlikeable character; after just five minutes his bullishness was apparent and you started to despise his attitude; a tribute to Jonathan's wonderful acting talents.

Jenni Wright plays Lady Ethne Fritton, whose portrait Sir Henry had commissioned. So many of these characters have things to hide, or seem to have hidden agendas, all of which give possible motives to bump off Sir Henry. Lady Fritton is no different but, like many of the other suspects, is that motive strong enough for murder?

Helen Newham makes her welcome return to Riverside playing the part of Aunt Dulcie, who has resided at Fritton's country pile for as long as anyone can remember, so she knows the family inside out. She also knows what is going on under the surface, so she holds many secrets about several of the disgruntled family members, but will she spill the beans on the family who have put a very nice roof over her head for so many years?

John Hurley plays Harry Lakeman, the artist who Sir Henry commissioned to paint Lady Ethne. John makes his debut for Riverside, but is no stranger to the local theatre stage. The mistake Sir Henry made when hiring Lakeman to paint his wife comes to the surface in the play, and opting to not pay Lakeman for completing the job, slightly upsets this artist. Why though would Sir Henry withhold the payment? Does he have a valid reason? Could this reason be enough for this mild mannered artist to want to airbrush Sir Henry out of his life?

Emjay Sadler plays Mabel the Maid. Now, I mentioned about Liz creating every character different, well Mabel the maid is one of those characters that makes you giggle every time she appears on stage. Emjay returns to the stage after about fifteen years, but boy, I am one reviewer who is ecstatic to see her back, especially with a character like Mabel. The best way I could describe Mabel as being a cross between Alfie, the doddering waiter from "One Man Two Governers" and Julie Walters character in the Victoria Wood comedy gold scene "Two Soups". Instantly lovable with an ability to make you smile without saying a word. Emjay's physicality as Mabel is superb and I really hope that I don't have to wait fifteen years before I get to see Emjay performing again. Brilliant West Midlands accent as well.

George Fitton is played by Tom Francis, not only making his debut appearance for Riverside Drama Company, but his first time acting on stage. I've not seen such a nerves free, comfortable and confident performance on a debut. George obviously has "suave" running through him because George Fritton is Mr Suave, resplendent in a perfect black tux and bow tie, and the shiniest black shoes that you could see your face in. George is Henry's son who is engaged to Betty Drabble. That is the sticking point between Henry and his son, and when Sir Henry threatens to write him out of his will, if he marries Betty, that gives him motive enough, especially as Betty is only with George for one reason!

Samantha Badman plays the fiancée Betty Drabble, and what a nasty piece of work Betty turns out to be. She knows that Sir Henry doesn't like her and why, but Betty also has some dirt on him that she is threatening to reveal to Lady Ethne, should he put the mockers on their engagement. It's not often that you see Sam play a nasty character, but she does it so well, and she makes you feel that eradicating a barrier that threatens her gold-digging intentions is something that could come easy to Ms Drabble!

Joyce Crowley is a character who is invited to the party to make up the numbers for the meal to make sure that the male and female numbers match, and after Frank Lucas makes a sudden appearance, and is invited to stay for the meal, Sir Henry offers the invite to Joyce. There's also another reason for the invite, as we discover during a conversation between the pair. that connection though has been spotted by another character in the play. Diana Edwards plays Joyce Crowley.

Stuart Round plays Frank Lucas. Lucas has turned up to see Sir Henry on the day of the party, so it would be rude to not invite him to stay, wouldn't it? Sir Henry was Lucas' Commanding Officer, but Henry was under the impression that Lucas was dead. Why would he think that? Lucas has travelled all the way from Canada to pay a visit to Sir Henry, but for what reason? Right near the end we see an unexpected glint of comedy with Lucas, which was telegraphed beautifully, seconds before the actual piece of comedy. Another excellent touch from the writer.

Jack Ellis, who I know from his time performing in student theatre at the Nottingham New Theatre, plays the part of DI Pendergast. Prendergast likes everything done by the book, and is not impressed by the appearance of WPC Bates. Let's not forget, this is set in the 1950's where women were still expected to be the home maker and not taking up a job in the police force, and if they do, they should be there to type up reports. By the end of the play though, Prendergast is quite impressed by the many talents of his WPC. Jack makes his first appearance in the second act, but from the start of this act, he is on stage practically every second of the almost ninety minute second act. Another excellent accent as well with his soft Scottish accent. Not sure if Liz was thinking of an Edinburgh type of accent, but it worked really well, and sounded like it could have been Jack's natural brogue. Maybe he perfected it on his Edinburgh Fringe performance. It's great to see Jack on local stages again.

Charlotte King, another new member, plays WPC Bates. Like Tom, this is Charlotte's first time on stage, and her debut for Riverside, although no stranger to the world of local theatre, having been involved back stage in charge of the props for various theatre groups. Like Tom, there were no signs of nerves at all on stage showing a quiet air of confidence, which worked so well for this WPC, also showing her DI that she is just as good at her job as any male policeman.

Directed by Liz Turner, assisted by Celia Billau. I said earlier that this is the best new play I've seen for a while. Having written the play, who better to know how that should look and sound on stage but Liz. Pacing was spot on, and the twist at the end was unseen until the reveal - I actually heard gasps in the audience at the reveal. I thought that I was doing so well because up until the end of the first act, it could have been anyone. The second act, I picked up on a couple of "clues", and I thought that I'd cracked it.... until the twist!

Set design is by Bob Baron. The action takes place all in one room, with just a section of the stage showing an outdoor garden bit. The rest was set in a posh room inside the country house, adorned with a good selection of props, managed by Sandra Read. I loved the portrait of the Lady of the House, and I really hope that Jenni gets to take that home at the end of the run as a momento of this brilliant play.

Sound is by Dave Martin and Keith Salway, and what I loved about the sound in this production was that the music selections ran in as an under score to the script so that when the actors had completed their bit, the rest of the song - all aptly chosen from the hit parade of the 1950's - occupied our ears while the scene changes were taking place. Another nice touch!

No need for microphones and, as Jonathan showed, all you need is good projection, which is what these actors all had.

Lighting by Dave Martin. Simple and effective. No need for any flashiness, just simple fades in and out, and that is all that was needed in a play like this. As I've said in the past, simplicity can be just as effective as a big lightshow.

It's not often that you see an auditorium so full, even on the second night, for a play that no one has seen before or knew much about. It's a brave decision for any local theatre group to produce something like this, and take a chance on an audience flocking to see something new, but that gamble paid off. I expect because Liz knew what a brilliant story this was, what amazing characters Liz had created and what a fabulous cast Liz has amassed. Now, if you don't believe me, go and see this production and tell me I'm wrong!

"Portrait Of A Murder" is at the Duchess Theatre in Long Eaton until Saturday 22 June.