Jordan Harris 12-09-13 Acting 1 Play Critique

The Play Critique (The Mouse Trap)

The Mousetrap, a murder mystery play by Agatha Christie that originated in the West End of London, is the longest running stage show in history, debuting in 1952. It hooks audiences in with all the different possibilities, but the ending is considered a major plot twist. The conclusion of the play is so surprising that most audiences are encouraged to not share the outcome with others that have not seen the play. On Wednesday, November 20, I got to see this play performed at Wes-Del High School. The cast of The Mousetrap is relatively small, but all the characters have small quirks and qualities that set them apart from the others. The play does an excellent job of making every single character look suspicious, which leaves you not knowing who is the murderer until the every end. One of the characters that stood out to me in the production I saw was the character of Giles Ralston, the husband that runs the inn with his wife. Jeffrey Bird was the actor who played him and I thought he did a superb job. In fact, for most of the play, I believed the husband was the murderer. Bird did a great job of seeming like a loving husband one moment, and then seeming like a guilty killer the next moment. He was suspicious without overdoing it. Yet, when you find out at the conclusion that he isnt the killer, it is also believable. The actor also did a great job portraying a husband, even though he is only a high school senior and wouldnt have experienced something like that before.

Jordan Harris 12-09-13 Acting 1 Play Critique While there were many performers in this play who seemed more experienced than their ages permitted, there were also some who didnt seem to fully grasp the art of living truthfully through their character. One in particular was Miranda Mathews, portraying the role of Mr. Paravicini, the uninvited inn guest who comes to stay after his car overturned in a snow drift. The fact that this part was played by a female was, of course, not to be expected, but that didnt seem to make a difference one way or another, but rather the way Mathews chose to play the character. Mr. Paravicini was supposed to be portrayed as a foreigner, which could be part of the reason that most of his lines were so choppy, but many of the lines were obviously flubbed also, showing a lack of preparation for the part. This was especially apparent in Mathews scene with Michaela Rector, who played Sergeant Trotter, where both the actors clearly forgot their lines, making facial expressions that showed their mistakes that were visible to the audience. Not only were the lines not memorized, but it did not seem like Mathews was fully invested in the part, and it was clear that she was an actor playing the part rather than living the part. There was not much depth or inflection to the character, as everything she said was in much the same tone of mocking or amusement. It has been a while since I have attended a high school play, and the experience is even more different after having seen a college play. Still, it was an event I was glad I went to and for the most part, the play was executed very well.

Jordan Harris 12-09-13 Acting 1 Play Critique