Shortly after her marriage, Mavis Hollister, a villainess if ever there was one, and her lover put into motion their cunning plot to kill her wealthy new husband, Edgar. Meanwhile Edgar catches his new bride telling obvious lies about where she has spent the evening and Mavis is forced to think quickly to concoct a whole scenario which becomes more and more ludicrously frantic as the questioning progresses, all culminating in her improvised second attempt on Edgar’s life which seems to succeed rather well and all too easily………….or did it?
Before long the family cat cops it and Edgar’s body vanishes. The arrival of Edgar’s nice but dim daughter Susan, with fiancé in tow, plus an interfering housekeeper, fails to help, as do the two bumbling members of the local Constabulary. All manage to complicate everything as they try to solve the mystery of Edgars’ disappearance whilst being thwarted by an ever increasingly manic Mavis.
The Murder Room is a comic gem with a loony plot, barmy characters, slick and fast-moving dialogue and a cellar with a great deal of steps. Complication follows complication until chaos reigns supreme, and all directed by Jane Lindekam who helmed BDG’s Tiptoe Through the Tombstones, Brush With a Body and the popular Farndale comedies.
Performance dates are Thursday 8th 7.30pm £7.00 no supper or £13 with supper, Friday 9th and Saturday 10th March 7.30pm £13.00 with supper. Tickets will be available from Boxford Newsagents from Saturday 4th February, or you can reserve tickets by emailing bdgtickets@btinternet.com – simply tell us the day you want and how many tickets you would like. If you reserve Thursday tickets, please state whether you want supper or not.
Please note we cannot accept ticket reservations made via email after 29th February
Box River News Review:
Kate Belsey shone as Mavis who bumped off her new husband Michael Munn, who played Edgar in the opening scene, only for him to reappear later (the bullets were blank) in his original persona and as a police constable investigating the ‘murder’. Hot on the trail was Inspector James Crandall, a Columbo-type character played by Joe Barrett who finds Mavis (his lover) more than a match as she weaves her web of lies and deception. The presence of the “larger than life” housekeeper Lottie Molloy, a cheeky portrayal by Janice Macmillan, and effervescent sweethearts Susan Hollister and Barry Draper (Hannah Carpenter and Kevin Roychowdhury) added spice to the proceedings. The “class acts” in this sparkling production were Kate with her lovely facial expressions, comic timing and zest and her cousin Hannah as the scatter brained Susan, were a joy to watch. Michael Munn, deadpan and droll in his dual roles of Edgar Hollister and PC Abel Howard, is to be commended, first for keeping his impressive barnet and moustache in place during the goings on, and for remembering which character he was actually playing. There was never a dull moment in The Murder Room which, with its intrigue, suspicion, lashings of comedy, suggestion of murder and madcap goings on, kept the audience entertained. Secret drawers, hidden stairways, a cleverly constructed popping up window seat operated from a coathook on the wall, and appropriate sound effects and dramatic music were all key ingredients. The comic game of cat and mouse was resolved in a frenetic finale in which Mavis realises that it’s Edgar that she really loves – or does she? As the curtain closes, the two are seen sharing a nightcap and, with a mischievous grin at the audience, Mavis urges Edgar to “drink your cocoa, dear” … potassium cyanide anyone? With director Jane Lindekam bringing out the best from her performers and a production team made up of John Kirby (stage manager), Paul Norris (sound) and Bill Horne (lighting) lending their expertise, not to forget Di and Jan whose culinary skills were evident again during the interval, The Murder Room was another winner from the BDG.