Topsham Estuary Players | What's On in Topsham | Live Drama in Devon | Theatre Companies in Exeter

‘Whodunnit’ by Anthony Shaffer is a witty parody/pastiche of detective fiction, especially of the Agatha Christie type, stuffed full of the expected setting, ( country manor) stereotypical characters ( the Boozy Butler, PC Plod, Dotty Aristocrat, Unconventional Detective etc ) and unexpected plot twists of the genre. The twist in this case involves the audience in part two being asked to solve the murder as the characters are unmasked as actors who have all ( but one ) being lured to the country manor by the murderer.

It is a ‘zombie whammy’ of a play ( a particular alcoholic beverage much loved by the Butler, who did the murder for once! ), fizzing with theatrical flourishes, verbal ingenuity, some very funny one liners (my favourite being Lady Tremurrain’s, ‘ Diabetes is debilitating enough for me without the additional fatigues of fornication.’) and greatly appreciated by a full house on the night. I particularly enjoyed the directorial inventions, like the comic business of the cleaner’s deceptive dance at the beginning, the calling out of various vegetable names throughout and the cleaner sweeping off Capodistriou’s head at the end of Act 1-a wonderful comic moment. I also liked the idea of the sergeant and a local civilian police officer engaging with the audience during the interval.

The play had good pace and the actors ( who were uniformly good ) obviously enjoyed the over exaggerated style of performance in Act One, which gave way to a more naturalistic style in Act Two. This transition was handled well. They all performed with tremendous energy, good comic timing and were deserving of their enthusiastic reception by the audience. The play was directed with great panache and close attention to the required pace needed to make this play work. The costumes, wigs and moustaches were excellent and really helped the actors create their characters and, more importantly, make the unmasking at the beginning of Act Two more dramatic. The set created the appropriate period and lighting and sound all contributed well to the ‘thriller’ atmosphere in the play.

Following on from the excellent ‘Roses of Eyam’, the current performance has set a high bar for the forthcoming production of, ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ in November. I feel sure the Estuary Players will produce another ‘zombie whammy’! Well done to everyone.