By Dale King
If Agatha Christie murder mysteries are your cup of tea, grab a mug of Earl Grey – hot – and take a seat among the many audience members at the Lake Worth Playhouse for a run of Christie’s top-notch tale, The Mousetrap.
A talented cast that delivers the playwright’s goods with aplomb keeps viewers on the edge of their seats. The old English drawing room set is replete with dark wood furniture, a comfortable sofa and chairs, elegant wall decorations, a sooty, black-screened fireplace and a big center window that looks out on a fierce blizzard. Plaudits to set designer James Cartee and his troupe of carpenters, Nelson Stone, M.A. Knoke, David Drain, Christine Schloemer, Chip Latimer, Lilly Florencio and Bob Sharky.
The heavy snowfall visible through the window may cause you to shiver, not only from a perceived chill, but from the strange goings-on here at Monkswell Manor – set deep in England’s cold, evergreen-strewn countryside.
The show is renowned for its unexpected twist ending that seemed to surprise many in the LWP crowd – judging by a chorus of gasps when the culprit is unmasked. The Mousetrap is also celebrated for its longevity, having opened in London’s West End in 1952. It ran continuously until March 16, 2020, when performances had to be discontinued during the COVID-19 pandemic. The show resumed May 17, 2021.
Set in the early 1950s, the play is driven by a police probe of murders at a nearby farmhouse. Just as an extraordinarily unusual entourage of guests arrives for a weekend stay at Monkswell, a radio crackles with news reports of the ongoing probe – a little too close for comfort.
The newly opened hostelry is operated by a couple of rookie innkeepers, Giles (Patrick Price) and Mollie (Julia Avery) Ralston, who welcome the motley group: Christopher Wren (Jon Hinostroza), a hyperactive young man with noticeably peculiar behavior; Mrs. Boyle (Susan Emley), a curmudgeonly older woman who is pleased by nothing; retired Army Maj. Metcalf (Neil Evangelista); Miss Casewell (Rachel Andes), a strange, aloof, masculine woman who speaks offhandedly about the horrific experiences of her childhood; Mr. Paravicini (Eric Purcell), a man of mystery who turns up unexpectedly, claiming his Rolls-Royce overturned in a snowbank and Detective Sgt. Trotter (Austin Gardner), a detective who arrives on skis, claiming he’s been dispatched to search for a murder suspect.
The action in Act I begins to rev the next morning when the guests see they are snowed in. Several revel about the wonderful breakfast Mollie has prepared. Mrs. Boyle is already miffed about the chilly house and lack of attendants. Wren is prancing about and examining the furniture for authenticity. Miss Casewell, dressed in a striking tan pantsuit, chain-smokes while writing letters.
After a telephone call is received at the Manor, a man identifying himself as a police sergeant arrives. He immediately begins to intensely question the guests, specifically asking if any have connections to the school/farmhouse where the murders took place.
Few offer useful answers.
Here, Christie cranks up the tension as a murder hits home. When Mrs. Boyle walks to the radio to turn down the volume on irritating music, a hand comes around the door frame. Boyle sees someone she recognizes, but out of the audience’s view. The hand switches off the lights – and when Mollie puts them on moments later, the complaining old lady is dead.
Trotter moves into full Inspector Poirot mode as he tries to ferret out the killer who has apparently come in from the cold. Some of Christie’s best action scenes take place — and the finale is an unanticipated delight. Some useful clues do come to the fore that help explain the conclusion, which seems most pleasing and appropriate.
Every cast member contributes to the show’s overall entertainment value and outstanding level of intrigue. Gardner’s portrayal of Trotter is one of the core performances. His inquisitional style and by-the-book procedure would have fit right in on a Law and Order episode.
Price and Avery portray the Ralstons as innocents, both to the world of high crime and the arena of hotel operations. But they are never able to rise above suspicion.
In fact, no one does. Hinostroza gives his Wren a flamboyant flair without making him too over-the-top. For his antics, he wins the prize for comic relief in a show that allows few laughs.
On the flip side is Andes’ tightly controlled performance as Miss Casewell. Not only does her appearance and aloofness unsettle the other guests, but she seems to be hiding information that could – and eventually does – become critical.
Emley is excellent as the elder visitor that everyone loves to hate. It’s almost appropriate that she gets knocked off – a death that concerns the others only because they don’t want it to happen to them.
Purcell is perfect as Mr. Paravicini, who yields no information about his background and remains the outsider throughout the drama. Also on board is veteran performer Neil Evangelista as Major Metcalf, an ever-inquisitive Army man.
Director Leanna Oliveira, who teaches acting and directing at Bak Middle School of the Arts, uses Christie’s whodunit devices to give the audience a lesson in crime-busting.
The Mousetrap plays through March 6 at the Lake Worth Playhouse, 713 Lake Ave., Lake Worth Beach. Tickets are available by calling the box office at 561-586-6410 or visiting www.lakeworthplayhouse.org.