Comedy is something that divides audiences. When I saw One Man, Two Guvnors; a farce that made me cry with laughter, I absolutely adored the production and didn't think for a second that any show would come remotely close to it.
However, tonight I've walked out of the theatre in varying degrees of physical pain from laughing until I cried at The Play That Goes Wrong - an absolute masterclass in perfectly timed, exquisitely executed, good old British comedy.
A play by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer, and Henry Shields, The Play That Goes Wrong premiered as a one act play at the Old Red Lion Theatre in London in 2012, moved to Trafalgar Studios in 2013, toured the UK and then opened at the Duchess Theatre in the West End on 14 September 2014. It won Best New Comedy at the 2015 Laurence Olivier Awards and Best New Comedy at the WhatsOnStage.com Awards in 2014.
The story is simple. The Cornley Drama Society are attempting to put on a 1920s murder mystery, but the performance falls foul of disaster after disaster and the accident prone cast struggle through every scene. Actors get knocked out, the play gets stuck on a loop and the set falls down - but never before has something that's founded on the principal of misfortune been so perfect at getting everything right!
Absolute credit in this production has to go to the cast who are slick, well rehearsed and magic from the word go. Be under no illusion; to perform in a play where things don't go to plan is arguably more difficult than one where they do - but each person on stage this evening was a shining example of precision acting and played their part in creating a comedy masterpiece.
The original West End cast have become synonymous with the parts they play in the show. From various TV and festival appearances, more than many productions - they seemed to become connected to the roles in such a way that there was trepidation to see anyone else put the costumes on. However that trepidation was misplaced; every individual on stage (and in a box!) tonight excelled and made everyone - no matter what age - cry with laughter.
And please don't consider that a standard 'turn of phrase' - this production has moments where large swathes of the audience had tears running down their faces to the point where they were finding it difficult to carry on watching the action on stage!
To single out individual performers would be pointless. The Play That Goes Wrong thrives on the collective skill, timing and chemistry that every person on stage has as a team. Each of them fulfilled their roles exceptionally and it's that dynamic that makes the show work - and having seen the action on stage twice, plus numerous segments on TV specials over the years, I can honestly say that it gets better with age. An absolute must-see on anybody's list - you won't regret it one bit!
The Play That Goes Wrong is at Birmingham's Alexandra Theatre until Saturday 21st May. For more information and tickets, check atgtickets.com/birmingham.
