Review: Don’t Be Clue-Less
Launched in 1949, the Hasbro board game Clue may very well be the most infamous case of a “whodunit” adventure, cementing the idea in pop culture for generations. The murder mystery game was the inspiration for the now cult-classic 1985 film of the same name as it told the story of six strangers at the Boddy mansion on a dark and stormy night. Since the film’s release, the movie has been adapted into a stage show, this time as a murder mystery farce.
Directed by Casey Hushion and based on the original screenplay by Jonathan Lynn, Clue Live on Stage! follows the story of these six strangers as they gather in an old New England mansion in 1954. Given false names to protect their identities and gifted with a weapon upon their arrival (a candlestick, a rope, a lead pipe, a revolver, a wrench, or a dagger), Colonel Mustard (John Treacy Egan), Mrs. White (Tari Kelly), Mrs. Peacock (Joanna Glushak), Mr. Green (John Shartzer), Professor Plum (Jonathan Spivey), and Miss Scarlett (played tonight by Mary McNulty, although the role is typically played by Christina Anthony) are shocked when their host Mr. Boddy (Alex Syiek) is murdered during the party.
The company of the North American tour of Clue
As they try to uncover who amongst them committed the crime, where it happened, and which weapon was used, they discover they are all being blackmailed due to their sphere of political or social influence in Washington DC.
Audiences are first welcomed to the manor by Wadsworth the butler, played by fiercely dynamic Mark Price, and flouncy, snarky French maid Yvette (Elisabeth Yancy).
First to arrive is the utterly dim-witted Colonel Mustard. A former military man with fraudulent claims of grandeur, Mustard provides tried-and-true comic relief as Egan plays on the idea of Mustard’s intellectual ineptness.
Next up is the widowed, high class Mrs. White, who swears up and down she did not kill her nuclear physicist husband, even though he is her fifth husband to mysteriously disappear.
The company of the North American tour of Clue
Shortly after, they are joined by Mrs. Peacock, the wife of a US senator who has been accepting bribes from foreign powers. Glushak expertly plays into Peacock’s hoity-toity manner with her ostentatious peacock feather headdress and almost transatlantic accent we’ve come to expect from aging women in the 1950s.
Shartzer shines as the nervous, fidgety, germaphobic Mr. Green, a State Department employee scared of his own shadow. His physicality and comedic timing steal the show, bringing a dose of flair and sparkle fingers to the stage.
Professor Plum and Miss Scarlett are the last to arrive, bringing with them a heavy helping of comedic prowess. Plum is a disgraced psychiatrist who garnered a reputation for inappropriate behavior with his patients and brings his skeezy charm to the manor.
But it is McNulty who is perhaps the best thing about this production in the role of Miss Scarlett, a sassy, quick witted madam from Washington DC. In a production full over-acting and campy sound effects (which, to the production’s credit, is the whole point of this over-the-top whodunit), McNulty manages to bring not only the style needed to match that of the rest of the show, but also a more grounded, believable delivery, bringing a sense of realness to the role.
The company of the North American tour of Clue
Designed to be campy and goofy, Clue is an over-the-top and exaggerated farce. With 1950s style comedy and theatrical elements (such as a clap of thunder and a mischievously raised eyebrow when a character says something ominous), the production doesn’t take itself too seriously. The almost slapstick style humor is true to that of the original 1985 film with a few modern, edgy moments of snark and innuendo, so often led by the quick-witted Miss Scarlett.
In a production that so heavily relies on lights and sound to feed into the ridiculousness, scenic designer Lee Savage, lighting designer Ryan O’Gara, and sound designer Jeff Human have created a technical masterpiece in the Boddy mansion. Coupled with Jen Caprio’s truly gorgeous costumes (Miss Scarlett’s and Mrs. Peacock’s dresses in particular are things of beauty) and hair, wig, and makeup design from J. Jared Janas, the production stays true to its roots.
Clue features additional writing from Sandy Rustin and additional material from Hunter Foster and Eric Price.
Clue Live on Stage! runs at the Durham Performing Arts Center through Sunday, September 8, 2024. Tickets can be purchased here. Not recommended for children under 13 years of age.
All photo credit to Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade. Additional production photos can be found below.
