Monica Kempski

Thea100

Boucher

11/18/10

Review #2

Fortunately, I was lucky enough to attend “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” by Rupert Holmes on

opening night. This play was about the events leading up to and after the murder of Edwin Drood. In the

end, the audience decides who the murderer is. As I sat down in my seat, the scowling girl next to me

spit out her chewing gum, wrapped it in her ticket, and threw her program on the floor. Clearly, this

reflected her attitude that she did not appreciate theatre, and was not enjoying being here. However, by

the end of the night, the play had worked its magic through its excellent aspects; such as, stage design,

directing, acting and plot. The ungrateful spectator walked out of the theatre smiling from an enjoyable

night. I too enjoyed the production, and felt it was one of the best plays I have seen due to its great

elements.

The stage design was wonderful throughout the play. Before the play even began, I took in the

ornaments of the proscenium stage. There were lots of framed units. For example, there were flats

shaped like Roman pillars on either side of the inner edges. Next, those two pillars were combined by a

flat over the stage that had “Music Hall Royale” written on it. Finally, there flats below that painted like

red draperies. This clearly established the setting of the play- the stage of the Music Hall Royale. This

was peculiar to me- could this possibly mean there is a play within a play? In this way, the opening set

only made me more eager to see the production.

Throughout the play, there were changing sets. This was aided by the various screens that

would project different images for the background. For instance, the interior of a rich mansion was

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projected for John Jasper’s house. While the characters were outside, a view of a town was projected.

While at a busy train station, various images of trains moving were shown behind the actors. Finally, a

spooky moon and gravestones was the projected background for a graveyard. This all helped establish

the different realistic settings, making the audience suspend their disbelief. By not having to imagine the

scenery, the audience members can focus more on the characters. This is what the audience is supposed

to do-focus on the characters to try to solve the murder mystery. Thus, by establishing an obvious

mood, atmosphere, and place, the set design functioned perfectly for the purposes of the play.

However, the projected screens were not the only elements of the scenery that functioned well

to serve the purpose of the play. For instance, there were very little set props. The only major ones

present were a table appropriate for the Christmas dining scene, and a piano for Rosa’s lesson scene.

Here again, the limited props shifted the audience’s focus on the characters, allowing them to help

decide the murderer. The limited props also allowed for minimal composition; in which, the entire cast

could be on stage, and at that same time move with ease.

Another aspect to the play that made it successful was its excellent directing. I believe the

director’s vision was clear- to establish realistic characters so the audience can feel as if they are

participating in a real murder mystery. What I found most interesting was that the director instructed

the characters to interact with the audience. They moved about and talked to the audience before the

play and during intermission, all while staying in character. This made the characters and the play itself

more believable because the actors were constantly as their characters. Thus, with this simple method,

the director’s vision was achieved. The director was also very good at making sure that all parts of the

play were “mise en sine,” or “everything in the picture. All the actors were in line so that props and the

other actors were clearly visible. Finally, I found the directing to be excellent because based on the

quality of the acting, I could tell that the director kept all of the actors in check and hardworking. It was

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apparent that the director motivated them to put forth their best efforts to become their characters and

deliver their lines successfully to portray their character’s personality.

A third aspect that made this play fantastic was the acting because each part required great skill.

All of the actors successfully portrayed their characters by bringing out their unique personalities, views,

and backgrounds with clear and understandable dictation. Not only did they have to speak their lines

clearly, but some actors even had to sing. It is very challenging to sing in-tune, and at the same time, try

to get a message across to the audience. I give the actors substantial credit because they took their

difficult task and executed both their singing and their lines perfectly. Furthermore, their speech and

singing was even more incredible because they had to do everything in an English accent. In this way,

the actors helped establish the locale of the play, making it even more realistic because the English

obviously do not speak in American accents.

In addition to the actors’ speech successfully portraying their characters, their costumes worked

incredibly to make the story believable and easy to understand. All costumes reflected the style of

Victorian England, the setting. Men were all in suits and top-hats, and women wore dresses. Most

costumes reflected the mysterious mood due to the dark clothing. The only clothes that were different

served to symbolize a character, implying their personalities. For instance, Rosa’s dress was pink, a rose

hue which reflected her name. In addition, her dress had roses which constantly reminded the audience

who she was. The dress was also had lace a high-cut neck. In this way, it was just like her character,

elegant and innocent. Also, Princess Puffer’s costume reflected her risqué personality. Her dress was

low-cut emphasizing her sexual and mischievous side. The dress was purple, red, yellow, orange, and

white to reflect a colorful personality. When Princess Puffer is lurking about not wanting to be seen, she

covers herself with a dark purple shawl to blend in with everyone.

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 The script not only made the production fabulous, but unique as well. This was clearly a “meta-

drama” which is a play that constantly calls attention to itself. The actors are quite aware that they are

putting on a production and have several lines and actions to tell the audience so. For instance, the

narrator talks directly to the audience. Also, when the characters are first introduced, the narrator tells

the name of the character and who they are played by. However, these are not even the real names of

the student actors, which add a whole new complexity to the script: this is a play within a play. The stage

manager also comes on stage and helps with the costuming, making herself a character in the play.

These complex layers of the script made the play unlike any production the audience has ever seen

before. Therefore, it was that much more engaging and attractive to the audience. Another attractive

element to the script of the play was the audience interaction. The audience has to vote on who killed

Edwin Drood. This audience interaction keeps the play interesting and will not bore the audience.

The only criticism I have about the play is its length. Yes, it was very entertaining; however, it

was a bit too long. I understand that this is a murder mystery, so each character has have a proper

exposition. Only in this way, can the audience gather enough information on each character to obtain

suspicion of them for the murder mystery. However, I did find an unnecessary scene that made the play

lengthy. I felt the “Off to the Races” scene was totally unnecessary, and I did not get its point.

Despite my slight criticism, I thought “The Mystery of Edwin Drood” was one of the best

productions I have ever attended. The play successfully kept my attention with its realistic plot (yet not

due to meta-drama), the superbly complex acting, directing, and costume design. All of these individual

elements of the production strung together to make a totally refreshing and unique production that was

easy to enjoy.