The Secret of Chimney Manor, This Year’s Theatre in the Round Agatha Christie Thriller.

The Agatha Christie play is an annual tradition at Theatre in the Round and also an annual tradition in my family. Since 2015 when I discovered Theatre in the Round, in their 64th season, I’ve taken the Aged P (my Mother) to the Agatha Christie production. Christie is a favorite author of hers and mine, and given the fact that she’s the best selling fiction writer of all time, I’m assuming quite a few others as well. This years entry is a world premiere of a new adaptation of the novel The Secret of Chimneys by playwright Todd Olson. A script full of red herrings you may find yourself at intermission trying to solidify your understanding of who’s who and what has transpired so far. If ever a play needed an intermission it’s this one. By the end of the night as the solution to the mystery came out, I had everyone clear and understood the solution, I can’t vouch for the Aged P though. The Christie productions are always fun and this one features some good performances though the production as a whole seems somewhat unfocused and not as sharp as it could be. While they attempt to get the slightly more humorous tone of this early Christie novel across, it only comes through in fits and spurts.

The book introduced two characters who would make repeat performances in Christie’s work Superintendent Battle, who would appear in five novels, and Lady Eileen “Bundle” Brent would return in The Seven Dials Mystery alongside Battle. It would be fun to see The Seven Dials Mystery adapted in a future season with the same performers in the roles. While Battle is the Scotland Yard man on the scene of the play’s crime, he acts a secondary lead to the stories true protagonist, or is he actually the antagonist, Anthony Cade. Cade is a down on his luck “Englishman” abroad who runs into James McGrath an old friend that commissions him to return to England and deliver two bundles. One is the manuscript to the memoirs of the late Count Stylptitch of Herzoslovakia. The other are some love letters that need to be returned to the author, a Virginia Revel who is staying at Chimney Manor. It’s thought she was being blackmailed by the person from whom the letters were recovered. Upon reaching England, attempts are made to buy and steal the manuscript which is thought to contain potentially embarrassing or damaging information about Herzoslovakia. Cade makes his way to Chimney Manor to return the letters only to discover that Miss Revel did not write them and that a murder has been committed. Clues and misdirections abound and practically no one is whom they appear to be.

Among the standouts in the cast is Seamus Foley as Anthony Cade, he gets the lighthearted almost screwball comedy aspect of the classic British Hitchcock lead, intelligent and witty. Unfortunately, the bantery relationship he should have with Emily Jabas’ Virginia Revel, doesn’t come across. It’s difficult to say if it’s the script, direction or Jaba’s choices as performer that fail to capture the sense of playful romance between the two characters. My suspicion is that the script could have bulked that up a bit and the Director could have put more focus on what was there in the script. Erik Steen does a nice job as Superintendent Battle, he comes across as intelligent and capable, but in a way that allows him to also cede the foreground to Cade. Kristen Mathisen who plays Lady Caterham Of Chimney Manor makes the most of a small roll delivering the dry humor and the perfect British flavor which the rest of the productions mostly hints at. Mathisen and Foley’s performances should have been the model on which the entire production is built but as such, they are the outliers and it feels like a missed opportunity. Stu Naber plays two roles, unfortunately there is no effort made either via costume or hair and makeup to differentiate them, causing some audience members to assume it was the same character. In contrast, Luke Langfeldt has to play at least four different roles and distinguishes each nicely. But the accent put on as Monsieur Lemoine, his largest role, may be too strong. It’s a fine line between an accent to lend credibility to your role but still being clearly understood.

It’s hard to know in a case like this, where I haven’t read the script or seen another production, if the reason for the lack of a cohesive style lies with the Director L. Robert Westeen or Olson the Playwright. Either way, while we get there in the end and certainly some misdirection is intended, the whole lacks the sharpness of the classic whodunits of the golden age. The elements are there for the making of a great mashup of Christie Story with a dash of P.G. Wodehouse, in the style of one of Hitchcock’s British Masterpieces like The 39 Steps or The Lady Vanishes. I think the script supports that approach, but maybe it doesn’t and Westeen was doing his best to mold it into that. The set design by Madeline Achen had me slightly worried during the first scene change, which took far longer than ideal, Nothing messes with the pace and flow of a story more than grinding everything to a halt as set changes are made. Thankfully, the concern was short lived as all other changes happened much quicker and I thought Achen’s design allowed for some well done scene changes without being overly elaborate. Particularly well done was a secret passage, which utilized a scrip so what appeared to be a solid wall, we were able to see through into the hidden space when characters entered it. Deb Murphy does a nice job with the period costumes, with the exception of a poorly fitting suit worn by Monsieur Lemoine.

The Secret of Chimney Manor despite my criticisms is fun and full of twists, turns and surprises. The production runs through December 17th at Theatre in the Round Players in Minneapolis. For more information and to purchase tickets go to https://www.theatreintheround.org/home/season-placeholder/72nd-season/secret/

This Holiday season why not start a new tradition of taking in a live theater production with family and friends? It’s a great way to create lasting memories and will give you something to look forward to every year as you experience the magic of live theater. Whether your budget is large or small, there is a show for you. Looking for gift ideas? Don’t we all have enough “stuff”? Give the gift of live theater, go to your favorite theaters website, see what shows they have coming up in the new year and give the gift of an experience over material.

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