Berkshire on Stage

Agatha Christie’s “The Mousetrap” is a theatrical phenomenon and said to be the longest running play in the world.  Based on a radio play created from real events, it opened in London in 1952 and closed for a year due to the Covid pandemic. It reopened in 2021 and has been performed over thirty thousand times. This perennial crowd pleaser is perfect for Sharon Playhouse’s intimate theater space as they close out the 2025 summer season.

Giles (Reid Sinclair) and Mollie Ralston (Dana Domenick) who are the new owners of The Monkswell Inn, an hour outside London, nervously prepare to welcome their first guests. While Mollie is listening to the radio, a London murder is described which seems to throw her out of sorts.  Nonetheless, the guests, a motley group of people of varying ages and backgrounds, arrive during a blizzard and gather in the living room.  Christopher Wren (Will Nash Broyles,) a young man, is the first to arrive.  He is followed by Mrs. Boyle (Sandy York) and Major McGrath (Dick Terhune) who, though strangers, arrive together in a taxi due to the storm.  The last expected guest to appear is Miss Casewell (Caroline Kinsolving) a somewhat mannish young woman.  A Mr. Paravinci (Ricky Oliver,) with a foreign accent and affected European manners, stumbles in after his car has overturned in the storm, or so he says.

The phone rings and Molly is told that a Sergeant Trotter (Christopher McLinden,) a detective, will soon be at the inn investigating the London murder.  She and Giles are concerned and confused but the intrepid Trotter skis in to interrogate the inn’s guest 

Throughout the play, the children’s nursery rhyme song “Three Blind Mice” is often heard or referred to, including a note left with the London murder victim.  Sometimes the tune is soft and sweet, sometimes ominous. It’s a clue, but to what?

The first act is primarily expository as it introduces the various characters with suggestions of their personalities and backgrounds.  Christopher is hyper-active flouncing around the living room making tart comments and over-reacting to criticism.  Mrs. Boyle, in typical English mannered delivery, finds fault with everything and everyone around her.  Paravinci, a big personality, appears to be younger than he seems and delights in frightening the other guests with menacing innuendo. Miss Casewell and Major McGrath keep to themselves as they have very little to say or do with the other guests which only heightens the aura of mystery.  Sergeant Trotter is very efficient as he attempts to determine that one of the guests is a murderer and another a potential victim.  

Suspense builds in the second act as weaknesses in people’s stories become evident.  Many truths emerge as they turn on one another. Even the newlyweds, Giles and Molly, begin to doubt the  authenticity of their relationship.  Emotions run high while Trotter relentlessly questions the guests in the inn through the twists of the plot.  In true Christie form, the play closes with a surprise ending.

Director Hunter Foster has created an eerie mood that enhances the tentative circumstances and the characters’ relationships.  He does not allow melodrama to undermine the mystery’s events and tone.  The production is fast-paced and his stage pictures are artfully created. Foster and the designers have kept the play as it was created in 1952, even to the music on the “wireless” from that era.  The cast brings life and depth to their roles and their performances coalesce into this  fast paced “Who Done It.”  Each is real as their personalities develop.  Though some may be the very epitome of stereotypical British Types, they are believable.  

The set designed by Christopher and Justin Swader is atmospheric of an old British inn which complements the mood of the play.  Kathleen DeAngelis’s costumes define the characters’ personalities and maintain the styles of the time period.  The lighting designed by Wheeler Moon enhances the haunting tone that permeates the play from the very beginning.  Bobbie Zlotnik has utilized wigs for several of the characters that add to their personalities.

Sharon Playhouse’s production of “The Mousetrap” maintains Christie’s authentically well- crafted evening of murder and mayhem!

In keeping with the time honored tradition, at the curtain call the audience is asked not to divulge the ending. Mums the word!

The Mousetrap by Agatha Cristie; Directed by: Hunter Foster Cast: Will Nash Broyles (Christopher Wren) Dana Domenick (Mollie Ralston) Caroline Kinsolving (Miss Casewell) Christopher McLinden (Sgt. Trotter) Ricky Oliver (Mr. Paravinci) Reid Sinclair (Giles Ralston) Dick Terhune (Major McGrath)  Sandy York (Mrs. Boyle); Scene Design: Christopher Swader and Justin Swader; Costume Design: Kathleen DeAngelis; Lighting Designer: Wheeler Moon; Sound Design: Graham Stone; Wig and Makeup Design: Bobbie Slotnik; Production Stage Manager: Kristine Schlachter; Production Manager: Caroline Lapinski; Running Time: two hours with one intermission; September 26 – October 5, 2025;  For tickets: Phone: 860.364.7469 (ext. 200 & 201); email: boxoffice@sharonplayhouse.org