The Play That Goes Wrong
This year, The MHS Drama Department put on a hilarious rendition of The Play That Goes Wrong
Amaya Wagner '24
Embedded Files
Props broke, people fainted, and flats fell down. Written by Henry Lewis, Henry Shields, and Jonathan Sayer, The Play That Goes Wrong is a play within a play. It follows the Cornley Drama Society’s opening night of The Murder at Haversham Manor. Which means students had to take on two literal different characters and adapt to the challenges of becoming two different identities as an actor.
The Murder at Haversham Manor is a murder-mystery play set in the 1920s. The actors of Cornley persevere to the end of the show but face many challenges along the way. For example, characters get knocked unconscious, props fall off the walls, and a full-fledged cat-fight goes down.
MHS Senior, Evan Maynard, has been involved in all of the productions throughout his four years at MHS. These included Leaving Iowa, Spongebob the Musical, The Book of Will, and Newsies. Evan played Dennis Durke in The Play That Goes Wrong who played the role of Perkins in The Murder at Haversham Manor.
Evan as Perkins, taking Charles' pulsePicture courtesy: Ronmel Lopez
“My character, Dennis, is a young grocery store worker who is doing the play to make friends. Dennis thinks he is the best on stage and is always trying to impress Courtney, one of the stage crew members,” said Evan. “For this role, I created a backstory for Dennis, which helped me get an idea of his level of maturity and understanding of the stage.”
The audience knows the play is going to go wrong, but the characters putting on the play do not. This means students had to react as if they didn’t know what was coming next.
“This play required a lot of skill in the sense of the play going wrong, in a way that it looks accidental and not planned,” said Evan.
Another senior, Parker Ellsworth, has been involved in Miss Holmes, Into the Woods, Leaving Iowa, The Spongebob Musical, The Book of Will, and Newsies, here at MHS. Parker shared that The Play That Goes Wrong was his favorite play he has participated in.
“This was probably my favorite fall play, but with musicals, this show probably takes second or third place,” said Parker. “I played the director of the play, Chris Bean, who also plays Inspector Carter in the murder mystery. He holds onto every bit of hope that the play will go perfectly, but as you can see, that isn't how it turns out.”
Parker wasn’t the only one who loved this play. The reactions from the audience showed that everyone who attended loved it as well.
“A lot of people really loved the show and thought it was hilarious which made me so happy. My orchestra teacher, Mr. Najarro, said he was belly-laughing the entire time,” said Parker.
Parker as Chris, talking to the audience
Picture courtesy of: Ronmel Lopez
For MHS Junior and cast member, Lexi Taylor this was their first play, but they have been involved in past musicals at MHS, including Spongebob and Newsies. Lexi shared that they also got great feedback from the performance of the play.
“I was extremely happy with the commentary we all received. I loved hearing about their favorite parts, how unexpected their reactions were, and their overall opinions on the show,” said Lexi.
Lexi played the role of Annie, who was Cornley Drama’s stage manager. When the leading lady, Sandra, passes out, Annie is forced to take on her role of Florence Colleymoore.
Lexi as Annie, arguing with Sandra
“My character was usually sweet and helpful to everyone unless things were going terribly wrong or people were being unreasonable,” said Lexi. “Everyone in the cast helped me prepare for this role. Backstage we would call each other by our stage names and we all had our own personalies that played a big role in character development. Also, everyone made it their mission to be sure that everyone was safe and secure while putting on this show which really helped.”
Lexi’s character, Annie, is not an actor and only enjoys helping out behind the scenes. Later in the play, Annie learns to love the spotlight and Lexi said it was challenging to act out that change.
“The biggest challenge I faced with this role was having to switch from acting terrified of being on stage, to eventually fighting for the part because I ended up loving it,” said Lexi.
Taking on two different roles can be difficult. Similarly to Lexi, Parker shared that it helped to stay in character backstage.
“Even if we weren't being seen by the audience, we were often still in character. That way, when I went on each time, I was already Chris, and then I would just have to play Inspector Carter,” said Parker.
Even though it may not have looked like it, the play went right! Every single cast member's performance was truly amazing.
“I think this show was a hit! Many people that I talked to thought it was hilarious and one of our best shows yet. It was super fun to be able to make so many people laugh,” said Evan.
Stay tuned to see these Muskies in the upcoming spring musical, The Drowsy Chaperone!
Page updated
Report abuse