In the grand tradition of farces that stretch back to plays like The Servant of Two Masters in the 1700s to the more recent Michael Frayn’s Noises Off, this production of The Play That Goes Wrong is fraught with complications from the play’s inception.
At play’s opening, stage crew members are wresting with an uncooperative fireplace mantel which is finally set in place so that the director, Chris (John Sanders), can introduce himself and give us a history of the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society. We learn that previous productions like Two Sisters, Cat, and The Lion and the Wardrobe have suffered difficulties. This time they are thrilled to be performing in this elegant space and hope that all goes well for The Murder at Haversham Manor.
Charles (Sterling Sulieman) is a corpse artfully lying on a chaise at center stage. Unfortunately, his many adjustments and re-positioning alert us that all is not well with the players. As he is discovered by his fiancee, Florence (Regina Fernandez), manservant Perkins (Reggie DeLeon), and his brother Tom (Trent Mills), the improbable set of circumstances underpinning the plot begin the trajectory leading to the total collapse of the production. Added to the cast are Annie (Mary Faber), Max (Garrett Clayton) as Mills’ friend and lover of Fernandez, and Trevor (Michael Leon Wooley) as the ever present technical manager. Several cast members play multiple roles.
The script is followed faithfully by the Society in spite of the fact that what they are saying doesn’t match the actions set forth by the timing of the lines or the circumstances of the stage set. Cues are missed, doors won’t open, the aforementioned mantel disappears and many lines refer to it. Physicality is the requirement for casting this production. Fernandez has to be replaced by crew member Mary Faber as she has a mishap falling out a window. Faber is marvelous as she holds script in hand and warms to her role. Mills is trapped on a collapsed upper stage clinging to a desk and a globe as he slides toward the main stage. A sword fight ensues between Mills and his rival Clayton, whose enthusiasm for audience reactions cause him to beam cheerfully at us as he performs.
Writers Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields clearly sat together in a room somewhere devising jokes and pratfalls in the grand manner of junior high school. There is no let up from the first moments of the play to the final resolution. The more terrible the jokes are, the more improbable the actions become, the playwrights are relentless in making sure that no shtick is missed or double entendre goes awry.
Fernandez is wonderfully over the top as the 20s flapper distraught by Charles’ death. Clayton is a perfect caricature, and DeLeon bustles about trying to make sense of the tragedy while mispronouncing words. Mills is a wonderful foil for the improbable happenings and his role is crucial. Sanders also is a standout as the beleaguered Inspector who is summoned to solve the case, manfully pontificating at every turn. Faber and Fernandez duke it out in classic fashion as they vie for recognition as the star of the show. Sulieman gets some of the best moments as the ubiquitous corpse who appears everywhere and then delivers some very erudite pronouncements at play’s end.
Director Eric Peterson manages to deliver a near-perfectly timed production as demanded by the farcical disaster. Costumes by Adam Ramirez are delightfully period perfect. Lighting and sound by the talented Steven Young and Josh Bessom are essential for the execution of many moments in the play. Credit is also due to wig designer Kaitlin Hagen and fight coordinator Michael Polak for verisimilitude. But it is scenic designer Czerton Lim who steals the show with the management of his collapsing set and clever stage effects from the original production.
While one might quarrel that it is more exhausting for the audience than the players, it is fun and a lighthearted moment in a troubling time. It is a two-hour antidote to malaise and cynicism so prevalent today.
La Mirada Theatre for the Performing Arts, 14900 La Mirada Boulevard, La Mirada. Saturday, January 25 -Sunday, February 16, 2025. Thursdays at 7:30; Fridays at 8 pm; Saturdays at 2 pm and 8 pm; Sundays at 1:30 and 6:30 pm. Tickets range from $19 to $90. Tickets can be purchased on the Theatre’s website www.LaMiradaTheatre.com or at the Box Office at (562) 944-9801 or (714) 994-6310.
