A thrilling murder mystery jumps out of a board game onto the stage with comedy, clues and questions.
Based on the family-friendly classic, Cluedo 2 — The Next Chapter is now on stage at Nottingham Theatre Royal with the promise of an evening of fun and deductions.
And who doesn’t love a comedy mystery? Especially if set in the 60s, performed by TV stars and bringing you back to your childhood?
Set at a country manor house not far from London owned by rock and roll star Rick Black (Liam Horrigan), the story takes place on a dark and stormy evening in 1968.
With a house full of guests, being a forgotten star is the least of Rick’s problems as he was found shot, dead and strangled on the evening he was meant to release his new album.
The surprises began when he was found by his guests and then the police — resulting in everyone questioning and doubting each other. They decided to remain united only to realise there was more than one murderer in the house.
With a house full of suspects in the middle of nowhere, the real question arises — who murdered whom?
Was it Mrs Peacock (Hannah Boyce), Colonel Mustard (Jason Durr), Miss Scarlett (Ellie Leach), Reverend Green (Gabriel Paul), Professor Plum (Edward Howells), Mrs White (Dawn Buckland) or Wadsworth (Jack Bennett)?
The fun gets more complicated as the bodies pile up and the questions mount.
The first act sets the scene and prepares the story well, introducing the characters and building the comedy — progressing at a slow pace.
During the second act, the action quickens up, the music is louder, the lights become more intense and the sense of intrigue grows — until the truth is revealed.
The theatre show is just like playing the game in real life — hearing the stories, putting the pieces together and connecting all the dots until you’re proven wrong or right.
Throughout the performance, laughs were heard across the room and theatregoers interacted with the characters.
The cast was incredible, putting together such a fun and exciting theatre show, whilst playing characters that were so different from each other while also knitting perfectly together into the tapestry of the manor on that dark and stormy evening.
When I thought I had guessed the murderer, the plot twist was… there was more than one and it kept happening over and over again.
Cluedo 2 — The Next Chapter is definitely the cure for a full on day. It is fun, not too mentally exhausting and just the right blend of both murder (lots of it) and mystery — MT
