‘The Game’s Afoot: Holmes for the Holidays’ by Ken Ludwig. Fred Sullivan Jr., Director. Janie E. Howland, Scenic Designer. John Malinowski, Lighting Designer. Chelsea Kerl, Costume Designer. Andrew Duncan Will, Sound Designer. Jennifer Butler, Props Artisan. At Lyric Stage, Clarendon Street, Boston through December 17.
by Linda Chin
Lyric Stage’s long-term Producing Artistic Director, the larger-than-life Spiro Veloudos – now a giant in the sky – knew his audiences well, especially the subscribers who filled the matinees. He invited them to his Clarendon Street “castle” to see a play or musical, have a good time, and to come back again.
At Wednesday’s matinee of The Game’s Afoot, no changes to the welcoming culture Veloudos cultivated were afoot. Pre-show, there was merriment and mirth in the house; Producing Artistic Director Courtney O’Connor chatted animatedly with the guests before stepping onstage for her curtain speech.
The first scene of The Game’s Afoot is a “play-within-a-play” c. 1936, where leading man Sherlock Holmes, portrayed by actor William Gillette (Kelby T. Akin), takes a bullet in the arm during the curtain call. The rather timeworn red curtain they’re performing in front of then opens, revealing the Gillette Castle in Connecticut, where William lives with his mother Martha (Sarah Sinclair) and to which five houseguests are on the way.
Designed with grandeur and grace by Janie E. Howland, the action centers on a two-story atrium-ceilinged living room with tall windows through which we watch the weather turn frightful, multiple doorways for the actors to enter or exit, and a staircase to the upper level with a Christmas tree on the landing to set the season. Weapons (that may or may not be loaded) are on full display on two walls in the corner, and the living room is rigged with a bookshelf wall that rotates to become a bar. As one of the guests gushes, it is the perfect setting for a murder mystery, with 24 possible rooms to hide the body.
The houseguests include actors Felix Geisel (Remo Airaldi), Simon Bright (Dan Garcia), Madge Geisel (Pamela Lambert), Aggie Wheeler (Gabrielle McCauley). Much to their dismay, William has also invited theater critic Daria Chase (Maureen Keiller). A fluffy white dog named Portia rounds out the occupants.
Playwright Ken Ludwig has gifted each of these talented actors with interesting characters to portray, meaty lines to chew on, moments to milk, and a chance to be in the spotlight with a funny bit or dramatic moment. When a murder takes place on the premises, they also each become a suspect. Inspector Goring (Peter Mill) is the last character (in order of appearance) to enter; This Inspector makes house calls in rain, sleet, snow, and hail and ends up partnering with William (playing Sherlock Holmes) to solve the murder.
If you’re in the mood for mystery in addition to merriment and mirth, a play that’s different from the usual holiday fare or that will appeal to a multigenerational crowd, The Game’s Afoot is a good choice. I found it more amusing than murderously funny and wished the staging stayed focused in front of the fabulous main set instead of the aisles and upper corners, which may have reduced travel time and stepped up the pacing.
This production was charming and light-hearted, well-designed and directed, and superbly acted, and the various twists and turns in the plot kept you engaged in figuring out who “dunnit”. The opportunity to see a play in a cozy theater, and laugh with others, is a perfect escape from the outside world. Did the audience have a good time, leave smiling, and will they go back again? I have this image of Spiro saying, “No shit, Sherlock.” For tickets and information, go to: www.lyricstage.com
