Newly-ish weds Mollie and Giles Ralston (Joelle Dyson and Laurence Pears) have obtained Monkswell Manor, a fine country house they intend to run as a guesthouse. Preparing for their first set of guests, they stoke the fire, shovel the drive, tend the chickens, and wonder aloud about their future occupation. How tricky can it be? Of course, they cannot possibly know the troubles that lie ahead of them that evening.
The Mousetrap, the world’s longest-running play, is celebrating its 70th year onstage by touring over 70 theatres across the British Isles, including Oxford’s own New Theatre this week. Tuesday night, having never seen the play before, I stepped into its world of cosiness and crime to see what the fuss was about.
The plot is deeply familiar - A remote countryside property, an isolating snowstorm, news of a murder, a houseful of suspicious strangers, all with motives and mysteries of their own, and a determined detective following an unnerving clue. Even if you’ve never seen it, part of you will feel that you have. Of course, before the evening is over, violence will strike Monkswell Manor itself, and by the end of the night, nothing will be what it seemed.
There is some lovely physical acting in the way the characters occupy the stage and some nice visual gags (the killer is said to be wearing a dark coat, pale scarf and felt hat - a description that could fit any of the guests, and indeed, the hosts).
For a play that’s chockful of references to tragedy - child abuse, crime, loneliness, death - the play quite smartly keeps its tone from becoming too maudlin. The quirky characters lodging at the guest house are a riot - particularly Christopher Wren (a gleefully camp performance from Elliot Clay), a young trainee-architect who fawns over the antique furniture and pranks the other guests, and the pernickety killjoy Mrs Boyle (Gwyneth Strong), who likely inspired at least a few of Fawlty Towers’ impossible customers. The infusions of characterful comedy help keep the audience engaged and the story moving at a steady clip (at two hours long, not including the interval, the play is longer than it feels).
This is an elegant and by-the-book production, everything from the detailed-yet-practical set design to the sincere and subtle lead performances feels real. Joelle Dyson as Mollie and Joseph Reed as the Detective are particularly excellent, bringing nuance and warmth to their roles that dials up the intensity of feeling as the show hurtles towards its closely guarded twist ending. And what a twist! Like any great murder mystery, there’s an exhilarating stage at the three-quarter way point where it feels as though the killer could be literally anyone and you find yourself on the edge of your seat in anticipation. It’s well worth the secrecy.
The influence of The Mousetrap can be felt in everything from Knives Out to this year’s openly referential See How They Run, not to mention countless other films and plays. For a work that’s seven decades old, I was blown away by how fresh, funny and clever it still felt. It’s the perfect Autumnal evening out.