Another visit to the Malvern Hills this week and another evening at the Festival Theatre, this time to see the spooky mystery play The Cat and The Canary, performed by the Classic Thriller Company. I was looking forward to seeing this after seeing their previous play last year, a new version of Hitchcock's classic The Lady Vanishes. A good feature of the Classic Thriller Company is that they always have a great well known cast, which is good for attracting people who don't normally go to the theatre. This play was no exception featuring a host of Film, TV and Stage Stars. Marti Webb, Gary Webster, Ben Nealon, Tracy Shaw, Mark Jordon and Britt Ekland all feature in the cast. Unfortunately for the Malvern audience Britt Ekland didn't make an appearance this evening (or on previous or subsequent evenings) and we had he understudy instead. While this was a little disappointing (There was an audible groan from some audience members when it was announced at the start of the play), it didn't take anything away from the strong play and I hope Miss Ekland is well.
The Cat and The Canary is adapted by Carl Grose from the original 1920's play by John Willard, which played on Broadway for nearly 400 performances. It also spawned a number of feature films over the years. It is a classic old country haunted house thriller mystery play. And actually, one of the best I've seen. There are many twists and turns in this to keep you guessing, and even though I thought I had it figured out, there was still more twists to come. This was great from a 1920's play as a lot of older plays I've seen I've been able to work out the ending quite early on, but this one is definitely much more of a challenge. The story is about a group of distant relatives who are gathered in an old house to hear the reading of a will and learn which of the six of them will inherit the house and fortune. Then we get ghosts, maniacs, madness, scares, thrills and a few laughs over the following 2 hours 20 minutes.
The set is lovely, really authentic looking old house, which then changes to a bedroom in the second act and back to a library/study again for the third act. It is a really impressive domineering set that is almost like another character in the play. Add to this some atmospheric music and brilliant lighting and the stage is set for some classic horror.
Actors were all wonderful, all perfectly suited to their parts. Tracy Shaw (known for Coronation Street) stars as Annabelle West, the famous novelist. Marti Webb (of Evita fame) is the posh but lacking in funds Susan Sillsby with her niece Cicily played by Nikki Patel. Mark Jordon (Heartbeat) plays the clumsy and cowardly Veterinarian Paul Jones. We have Gary Webster (who I was very excited to see being a big fan of Minder where he played Ray Daley opposite George Cole for 4 series) playing the rough cockney boxer Harry Blythe. Ben Nealon (Soldier, Soldier) plays the suave actor Charlie Wilder and Eric Carte completes the main cast as the lawyer Roger Crosby. We also have Martin Carroll as Hendricks, the director of the local asylum and Jack Taylor plays the Policeman. Britt Ekland (Man with the Golden Gun, Wicker Man) normally plays the housekeeper Mrs Pleasant, who everyone should listen to but don't, but on this occasion the role was played by her understudy Briony Rawle , who did put in a very credible and excellent performance.
It was lovely to meet all the cast after the show, except Briony who may have escaped me as she had a lot of makeup on in the show I wasn't 100% what she looked like, and also Marti Webb who left by a different exit.
The play itself is fantastically scary, funny and a great whodunnit. If you like Agatha Christie or any haunted house type thrillers, then go see it as you won't be disappointed. Definitely one of the best murder mystery plays I've seen at the theatre.
It has finished it's Malvern run now but it still touring until April and is back in the Midlands at the Lichfield Garrick in March. To see tour dates check out : https://www.kenwright.com/portfolio/the-cat-and-the-canary/
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