November, 1953. Monkswell Manor has been opened as a guest house and the first visitors arrive in the middle of a blizzard.
Running out of food and fuel, the telephone line fails and, worst of all, one of the guests is found murdered. A young police sergeant is sent out – because he can ski – and has the thankless task of finding the murderer. But of course, no one is owning up to anything...
This is the plot of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap, which is being staged by the MADC at the Manoel Theatre this month to celebrate the play’s 60th anniversary.
Usually, it is the director who chooses the play he or she would like to see performed. In this case, it was quite the opposite.
Unless you are prepared to go to London to see it, this will be the unique, never-to-be-repeated chance to see what has made this play such an iconic one, and why it is still running nearly 61 years later, after it premiered in November 1952
“The play chose me!” laughs director Polly March. “MADC was the fortunate company to be offered a licence to perform it; and, worldwide, the only non-professional company. And I was invited to direct. Holding me back was the problem! I am a lover and collector of pre-1960s British crime novels, and the great Dame Agatha is up there at the top. She was absolutely first-rate at creating puzzles – and as far as I know, she invented at least two totally new twists. A bright light in the Golden Age of crime fiction.”
Unless you are prepared to go to London to see it, this will be the unique, never-to-be-repeated chance to see what has made this play such an iconic one, and why it is still running nearly 61 years later, after it premiered in November 1952.
The local cast is made up of a veritable who’s who from the theatre scene.
Manuel Cauchi is Signor Paravicini – a flamboyant foreigner; Jo Caruana and Stefan Cachia Zammit are the not-long married couple who own the house; Sue Scantlebury is Mrs Boyle, an habitué of hotels who finds the lack of amenities very poor; Jean-Marc Cafà is the young policeman who is a bit out of his depth with these wealthy (and odd) people; Chiara Hyzler plays Miss Casewell, a mysterious, rather abrupt and unsettling young woman; Toby von Brockdorff is the bumbling and pleasant retired Major Metcalf and Malcolm Galea is Christopher Wren, a very neurotic and peculiar young architect.
“We have not only got an excellent cast, but a first-rate technical team as well, and that is always such a comfort. The Gothic set is designed by Pierre Portelli and Chris Mifsud heads up the team that provides all the snow and effects that make it so special,” says March. “I have appeared in almost all of Christie’s plays in my professional working life, but never directed one. And I have never directed a thriller. So it’s been a steep learning curve.”
Scantlebury plays Mrs Boyle, a bit of an enigma who alternates between being a snooty, bullying, rude, know-it-all and a lonely, old, widowed lady.
“Being directed by Polly is always great, and I feel proud of what results. The Mousetrap is the world’s most famous play. It is a privilege to be able to see it here in Malta.
“We are going to give you a great show. The set is fabulous. And you will be one of those who gets to learn, and has to keep quiet about, ‘whodunnit’!”
March has the last word: “How could Maltese audiences miss this opportunity to be part of theatre history? The play premiered in 1952... and if our audience here keep their promise and don’t tell anyone the end, we might keep right on running as well!”
• The Mousetrap is being staged by the MADC at the Manoel Theatre on October 18-20 and 25-27.