The Coronavirus pandemic may have closed the doors to theatres across the UK but we still have great memories of fantastic productions that have taken to the stage in recent years… In the first of a new series looking back on productions that have tread the boards in recent years, Andy Howells checks out five Agatha Christie plays.
Agatha Christie’s legacy of murder mystery whodunit’s is fascinating as it is magical. Another reviewer recently made a comment to me “You’d have to be pretty silly not to work out whodunit by the first half.”.
I’m not so sure, I’ll admit I’ve never really read any of Christie’s books, while my familiarity with characters such as Miss Marple didn’t go much beyond Margaret Rutherford’s big screen portrayal up until a year ago. So, Agatha Christie on stage is a relatively new journey of excitement and discovery for me (and my youngest son). Its not merely working out who committed a murder, it’s the motive and to a degree the circumstances that are never black and white.
From all-star casting to top quality amateur dramatics – here are my five Agatha Christie reviews – I look forward to future presentations!
The 2019 UK tour of The Mousetrap. Photo by Johann Persson
The Mousetrap (UK Tour, 2019)
New Theatre, Cardiff
Mixing strong drama with carefully choreographed humour, particularly in scenes written around radio broadcasts, The Mousetrap ensnares the audience into every twist and turn of its magical tale.
The 2015 Tour of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None. Photo: Pamela Raith
And Then There Were None (UK Tour, 2015)
New Theatre, Cardiff
Whoops and screams from the audience occurred as the set went dark and a gun shot was released on stage.
The UK Tour of Agatha Christie’s The Mirror Crack’d from 2019. Photo: Helen Murray
The Mirror Crack’d (UK Tour, 2019)
New Theatre, Cardiff
The Mirror Crack’d is everything you could want from an Agatha Christie stage play, combining a classic story-telling formula with contemporary presentation and most importantly, keeping the audience guessing right up until its final moments.
In 2020, the stage adaptation of A Murder Is Announced played Cardiff’s New Theatre
A Murder Is Announced (UK Tour, 2020)
New Theatre, Cardiff
The setting of Little Paddocks may be steeped in a post-war simplicity of valve radios, luxury furniture, tea-sets and sherry glasses, but the timeless flow of Christie’s twisting, turning plot couldn’t be more alive and prominent.
Newport Playgoers presented Murder on The Nile at Newport’s Dolman Theatre in March 2020. Photo: Pixels In Time
Murder on The Nile (Newport Playgoers, 2020)
Dolman Theatre, Newport
Newport Playgoers presentation of Murder on The Nile will keep new murder-mystery fans guessing as to whodunnit right up to the plays climax, while similarly scratching that Poison Ivy itch for long-term Agatha Christie fans.
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Newport Playgoer’s Murder On The Nile Reviewed by Andy Howells
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Main Photo from the 2019 UK Tour of The Mirror Crack’d by Helen Murray