REVIEW BY CHARLOTTE FRASER
EDITED BY OLIVIA DI GRAZIA
Picture this: you enter the Guild Theatre, transformed into an early 20th century manor house evocative of an Agatha Christie-esque world. Feeling brave, or perhaps foolish, you sit in the first row. You’re warned about the close audience proximity, the themes of murder and mystery and the unpredictability of live performance. A giddy air of anticipation suffocates the audience. The lights go down and you only know one thing for certain: the game is afoot.
International House’s Clue: On Stage was a wild ride from beginning to end. With an ensemble cast that works together like a well-oiled machine, the chaos feels purposeful – even when you’re suddenly faced with four dead bodies and eight suspects.
Directed by Simone Lau and Grace Tynan, Clue: On Stage offered a night filled with the same level of chaos as a real family game night. With their reputations at stake, Professor Plum, Colonel Mustard, Mrs White, Mr Green, Miss Scarlet and Mrs Peacock are all lured to the mysterious Mr Boddy’s manor for a murderous ‘game’, which not only gives them a chance to erase the evidence of their past indiscretions, but to be free of Mr Boddy’s blackmail forever.
The cast brought these heightened caricatures to life, and not just in a silly way (though an air of silliness marked the performance), but in a way that convinced the audience that the characters genuinely believed they were doing the right thing. The sleazy Casanova, Professor Plum, was taken on by Matt Ho in a performance as relentless in its comedic timing as its physicality. The career widow, Mrs White, was realised by Nicole Fernandes, whose soft-spoken rendition of the character made it hard to believe she could be capable of murder (even when the facts suggested otherwise). Ryan Luo gave a compelling performance as Colonel Mustard, a veteran repeatedly foiled by grammar and common sense, and this gag, with the correct timing, made for some truly comedic scenes. Bailey Green and Maisie Sullivan-Kent, as Mrs Peacock and Miss Scarlet respectively, embodied two extremes of women with secrets: while Sullivan-Kent’s Miss Scarlet wears her indiscretions like a badge of honour, Green’s God-fearing Mrs Peacock insists that she can do no wrong. Aliya Mohammad Hilmi’s take on the bumbling, rule-obeying Mr Green lit up every scene, and even when things went slightly off-script, Hilmi managed to not only stay grounded in her character, but to make the moment comedic.
Simon Nagles as the French maid, Yvette, repeatedly stole the show with skilful comedic timing and an accent that was just the right amount of exaggerated. As both Mr Boddy and the Motorist, Connor Williams transitioned between the two characters with ease, switching accents in a way that earned quite a giggle from the audience. Williams died twice, both times spectacularly. Brodie Best (as The Unexpected Cop) and Hana Lumsdon (as The Cook) both gave strong, engaging performances, managing to pull off deaths that shocked the audience even when we knew what was coming.
This colourful gaggle was led through the play by Leathan Coates’ charming Wadsworth, a skilled gamemaster who stood out as a strong presence on stage. The physicality of the performances across the board brought the comedy to a new level. The actors didn’t shy away from being silly, working with the limitations of their space in goofy ways – cartoonish running sequences during set changes, the sudden appearance of a secret passage that had us all giggling and fighting with an invisible door – all of which came together to form a performance that reminded me of the fun of high school drama classes.
The set, designed by Andrea Tan with Amelia Lau, Nozomi Horie and Lewis Campbell, instantly drew audiences into the world of the play. The set of panels with three doors – painted to look like an old manor house – was simple and effective. Even if you had no idea what you were walking into, it was reminiscent enough of the board game’s aesthetic and the lounges described in detective fiction to set the tone before the performance even began. I half expected someone to walk out with an obnoxious, Hercule Poirot-style moustache or Sherlock Holmes’ deerstalker.
Hanul Uchigaki and Amelia Lau’s lighting and the audio-visuals designed and operated by Tom Diggle and Will Newton worked in tandem to create an immersive, wildly fun atmosphere throughout the performance. I keep coming back to the word cartoonish, but it is the best descriptor I have to convey how all of these production design elements came together. Rainbow lights and dance music during the goofy running transitions, sharp, comic-book-like lighting changes during big reveals – it all moved together splendidly.
The costumes (by Amelia Lau, Lauren Lou and Lilly-Rose Taee) matched each character to their famous iconography from the board game and ensured the new additions fit seamlessly within the zeitgeist of the play. With colours matching the names, the early 20th century noir style that ran throughout made every scene visually engaging.
The main critique I have of this production of Clue: On Stage is that it could have benefited from a little more rehearsal time to nail down some of the timing, not just with the actors but with the scene transitions. The set was well designed, but managing a lot of moving parts is difficult for even the most professional of shows. Though I do think the stagehands and cast did a commendable job of moving things around as quickly as possible, I could just hear my high school drama teachers yelling “transformation of space!” in the back of my mind as tables were being wheeled on and off.
The comedy of this play relies so heavily on the quick-wittedness of these characters and the sincerity with which they speak their lines. They don’t think they’re being funny; they just are. And if the pacing were just a beat faster, I think these actors would have nailed each and every joke.
With that said, I did enjoy the small adlibs that the cast added in transitions (Matt Ho’s “light is good” and “I have always loved tables” are sure to become staples in my vocabulary). These moments proved how well each of the actors understood their characters and how comfortable they were playing around as them.
Clue: On Stage was a masterclass in having fun on stage. This play never shied away from playing in the most literal sense of the word. Drawn into this world of murder, dance breaks, grammar jokes and multi-lingual puns, the audience was hooked from start to finish. The chaos of the performance got about as messy as an actual game of Cluedo. The ensemble was skilled, unpredictable and maintained a high energy level reminiscent of a StarKid production.
The audience left with a distinct spring in their step that didn’t go unnoticed, and I left with an itch to dig out my old Cluedo board and see if I could catch the murderer myself. This production prioritised fun in a refreshing way, and I’m eager to see what International House’s next theatrical feat will be.
International House’s Clue: On Stage played September 4th – 6th at the Guild Theatre.
CHARLOTTE FRASER (she/her) is a writer, performer and student editor based in Melbourne. She holds a BA in English and Theatre Studies and is currently completing her Masters degree at the University of Melbourne.
OLIVIA DI GRAZIA is a student at the University of Melbourne and sub-editor at The Dialog.
The Dialog is supported by Union House Theatre.
The Dialog 