Theatre 2025: Clue on Stage

So many of the plays that we watch each year are dramas which are intense, sad or even downright tragic.  While these shows are enlightening and enjoyable in their own way, I often wish for a lighthearted, fun comedy whose only goal is to entertain and make me laugh.  The play "Clue: On Stage" more than fit the bill.

The basis of the play Clue is the same-titled board game that was originally developed in the U.K. in 1943 under the name “Cluedo” before being released in North America as “Clue” in 1949.  Through questioning and the process of elimination, players try to deduce which of six possible suspects murdered “Mr. Boddy”, with what weapon and in which room within his manor.  The American version of the classic game has made the suspects, including Mrs. White, Mr. Green, Miss Scarlett, Colonel Mustard, Mrs. Peacock and Professor Plum, part of pop culture.  The game tokens match the colourfully named characters. The potential weapons include a rope, a knife, a candlestick, a wrench, a lead pipe and a revolver.  The murder takes place in one of nine locations in a manor including the Bathroom, Billiards Room, Conservatory, Dining Room, Hall, Kitchen, Library, Lounge or Study.  There are secret passageways connecting various rooms, making it quicker to traverse between some of the rooms.

The board game has inspired many adaptations in various formats including book, video game, movie, television series, TV game show and live theatre both as a comedy and a musical.  Now considered a cult classic, the 1985 movie Clue featured a star-studded cast including Eileen Brennan as Mrs. Peacock, Madeline Kahn as Mrs. White, Leslie Ann Warren as Miss. Scarlet, Christopher Lloyd as Professor Plum, Martin Mull as Colonel Mustard and Michael McKean as Mr. Green.  Additional characters added to the plot of the movie included Tim Curry as Wadsworth the Butler, and other actors playing Mr. Boddy, the French maid, the scary cook, and several others who show up at the manor.

Six strangers, each being blackmailed, are invited to dinner at a creepy manor by the mysterious Mr. Boddy.  When he winds up dead, the guests and staff work together to catch the killer before anyone else is killed.  By the finale, six bodies have piled up and it is up to the butler Wadsworth to hilariously reenact all that has happened and reveal the killer.

Acting as a parody of classic murder mysteries, the movie plays as a farcical, slapstick comedy with intentionally groan-inducing jokes, pratfalls and slamming doors while cleverly incorporating all the characters, weapons and rooms from the game.  Three endings are offered and when the movie first played in theatres, one of the three endings was randomly used at each. 

Adapted from the 1985 movie, the 2017 play "Clue: On Stage" maintains all of the salient plot points and much of the dialog from the movie, but amps up the jokes, slapstick and farce. The stage actors play their characters more broadly and larger-than-life, leaning into the caricatures and archetypes established in the movie while further accentuating quirks and tropes.  Colonel Mustard comes across as a pompous buffoon who is hard of hearing, leading to many humorous misunderstandings and some exchanges reminiscent of Abbott and Costello’s “Who’s On First” skit.  Miss Scarlet is the tough, sarcastic, sexy vamp. Mrs. White is a cold, morbid “Morticia Adams” type and possibly killer of multiple husbands. Mrs. Peacock is neurotic, a bit batty and quick to hysteria, giving off blood-curdling screams.  Professor Plum is an arrogant lothario and self-proclaimed ladies’ man.

For me, the two most interesting characters were Mr. Green and the butler Wadsworth, but for different reasons.  Mr. Green is timid, anxious, klutzy, effeminate and quick to declare his innocence as each death arises.  He is also extremely physically agile and acrobatic as he dodges, rolls, flips and bends to avoid danger.  In one scene, to avoid a crashing chandelier, Green performs a “limbo” move that has his body parallel to and almost touching the floor.  Wadsworth is a quick-talking British butler and the scene where he reenacts the evening’s events while mimicking all the other players is a tour-de-force.  Yet what caught my eye upon his first appearance and the thought that stayed with me throughout the show was how much the actor (Jeff Skowron) playing Wadsworth looked and acted like iconic Canadian actor Martin Short.

The set design in this play is extremely clever as it has to change quickly to represent the many rooms within Boddy Manor.  The main set where much of the action occurs is in the front hall, featuring a front door which all the characters arriving at the manor come in through, multiple doors on either side of the stage representing the many rooms of the manor, and two large chandeliers hanging in the hallway, which feature prominently in the plot.  Throughout the show, the doorbell rings repeatedly as more and more characters arrive through that front door.

Set pieces roll onto stage or descend from above to represent the various rooms, while multiple doors on either side of the stage are opened and closed in farcical manner during scenes when the search is on for the murderer.  In particular, the lounge, where each guest is deposited as he/she arrives, is configured on a rotating turntable.  With each additional guest, the door to the lounge swings wider and wider, exposing more of the furniture and décor of the room, and revealing the accumulating people being asked to wait there.

The stage version is fast-paced and manic but must use theatrical techniques to simulate movement including running in spot while the set changes around them and the stereotypical “chase music” plays.  The excellent choreography dictating the movement of the characters adds much to the humour.  One sight gag, repeated from the movie, has Miss Scarlett using a glass against a wall to eavesdrop on Waddsworth talking to Mr. Boddy.  Each subsequent guest presses their glass against the previous person, as if that would continue to amplify the sound.  The final joke occurs when Colonel Mustard, who is at the end of the chain, puts the glass against the wrong ear.

Trumping the movie’s three alternate endings, “Clue On Stage” offers up six different endings and a big, climatic, uproarious finale, leaving the audience laughing, cheering and thoroughly entertained.  Mission accomplished.

Theatre 2025: Strange Loop @ Soulpepper

A co-production between Crow's Theatre and Soulpepper Theatre, Strange Loop is a daring, complex and thought-provoking musical by Michael R. Jackson who won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama in 2020 and the Tony Award for Best New Musical in 2022.  This is a meta, self-referential show about Usher, a self-proclaimed “queer, fat, black man” in his mid twenties, who ironically works as an usher for a Broadway production of Lion King but aspires to be a successful playwright. The musical that Usher is working on is autobiographical, about a gay black man (himself) writing about a show about a gay black man who is writing a show about a gay black man.  The cyclical nature of his play is just one aspect of several recurring “loops” in his life as he struggles to define his identity.

Throughout the show, Usher deals with insecurities, self-doubt and angst regarding his race, sexuality and body image as he faces societal pressures including racism, homophobia and body shaming. These anxieties are amplified by harsh judgement and condemnation from his ultra-religious parents and are perpetuated and personified by the internal Greek chorus of his inner thoughts, including “Self-Loathing”, “Financial Faggotry” and “Corporate N***atry” and “Sexual Ambivalence”.  In the program, the characters are referred to as Thought #1 to Thought #6.  In the opening number "Intermission Song", the Thoughts repeatedly chant "Usher" and it is unclear whether they are calling his name or generically calling for the usher in the theatre.  This adds to the meta nature of the show.

Usher battles the psychological and emotional loops of his self-doubt as he struggles between conforming to the expectations of others and remaining true to his own identity.  Usher wants to form a meaningful connection in the gay dating scene but is mercilessly rebuffed in the song “Exile in Gayville” where he is deemed “too fat, too black, too ugly and dick too small”.  Out of desperation, he accepts a hookup with a sadistic white man from “Inwood” (a New York suburb) who has a fetish for black boys in an unflinching scene that is very difficult to watch.  This experience just reinforces his feelings of shame and self-deprecation.

Usher also deals with constant guilt trips from his parents.  His mother wants him to write gospel plays like Tyler Perry, who is known for writing melodramatic plays reflecting Christian values, focusing on forgiveness and redemption, faith and family values.  Usher shows distain for Perry’s works, deeming them too simplistic, formulaic, commercialized and lacking authenticity, relying on black stereotypes and reinforcing problematic tropes regarding gender and sexuality.  Combating his reluctance to write a gospel play, Usher’s “Thoughts” pressure and convince him by appearing as legendary black figures including abolitionist Harriet Tubman, civil rights activist James Baldwin, the titular character from the movie “12 Years A Slave” and “Whitney” (Houston).  To appease his mother, Usher writes an over-the-top Tyler Perry-esque parody that exaggerates all the themes, plots and characteristics that he finds objectionable.

I thought it was interesting to learn that at least publicly, Tyler Perry did not take offence to the way his work was depicted in Strange Loop and even phoned Jackson to congratulate him on winning his Pulitzer award.

In addition to Tyler Perry, the songs in Strange Loop make passing references to many names within pop culture that might be missed without more research.  In “Didn’t Want Nothing”, Usher’s father cluelessly mentions Scott Rudin, a successful gay (white) TV and theatre producer that Usher should get to know (since they are both gay!).  When Usher sings about feminism in “Second Wave”, he mentions Betty Friedan (writer of the Feminine Mystic) and “Charlene, Mary-Jo, Julia and Suzanne”, the first names of the characters from the TV show Designing Women.  In the final number “Strange Loop”, Usher refers to Dorothy which probably alludes to the character from The Wizard of Oz but might also be a play on the phrase “Friend of Dorothy”. 

The use of the actors playing the six Thoughts is quite interesting in the musical since they also portray other characters including theatre patrons, Usher’s potential lovers, his doctor, and his parents.  But rather than having just one actor play Usher’s mother, in some scenes all of them come out dressed as the mother and each sing a line of the song.  This was particularly impactful given the different vocal ranges of each of the actors, who were each cast with a specific vocal type to create a more diverse and dynamic chorus.  Thought #1 is a mezzo-soprano, #2 a tenor, #3 a high tenor, #4 a bari-tenor and Thought #5 and #6 each sing bass.

After struggling throughout the show, Usher finally realizes that rather than trying to change himself to get out of his unending loops of self-conflict, he needs to learn to live with and accept himself as he is. He is given some sage advice from a sympathetic patron at The Lion King, who tells him to “Live your life and tell your story… truthfully and without fear.  Find joy inside your life while you’re still here”. 

The term “strange loop” refers to American cognitive and computer scientist Douglas Hofstadter’s theory about cyclical, self-referential structures that loop back to their starting points, which is used by the brain to define one’s sense of self and identity.  Jackson’s intelligent application of this complex concept to represent how the recursive loop of a person’s thoughts, self-perceptions and external experiences influence one’s sense of self is very impressive and a bit mind-boggling.

What makes Strange Loop so groundbreaking is its innovative, no-holds-barred, and heartbreaking depiction of the experiences of being a gay black man, told with such vulnerability by a voice that is not often represented in live theatre.  The show is bold and unapologetic, not shying away from profanity, sexuality and subversive topics.

While I really admired the intent of this musical and particularly enjoyed the smart, insightful lyrics in the self-reflective songs sung by Usher, I found all the yelling and abuse from the parents hard to take.  The actor who played Usher had such a sweet, innocent smile and baby face that I just wanted to wrap my arms around him and shield him from the hurt being hurled at him.  I also did not particularly like the gospel play scenes as I found them depressing as opposed to satirical.  But overall, I thought this was a special show and understand why it deservedly won all the accolades that it did.

Theatre 2025: Flex @ Crow's Theatre

On the surface, the play Flex by American playwright Candrice Jones deals with a group of black, seventeen-year-old girls who are the starting five on a high school basketball team called “Lady Train”.  Living in rural Arkansas in the 1990s just as the WNBA (Women’s basketball league) was formed, they strive to make the State finals and hope to be discovered by college scouts.  In actuality, basketball merely serves as a backdrop that allows us to explore the lives of these girls, including their hopes, dreams, challenges, fears and desire for a better life outside of their impoverished community.

Starra is the talented point guard and captain of the team, who has a big chip on her shoulder.  Her need to prove that she is the best makes her a selfish player seeking personal glory over team success.  Growing up playing on makeshift basketball courts in dirt fields, she views success in basketball as her ticket out of her life of poverty in what she calls a “Dirt State”.  It is also a way to honour her deceased mother who was a rising basketball star in school herself and taught Starra to do whatever it takes to make it.

Starra’s ultra-religious cousin Cherise has just received her youth minister’s license and wishes to baptise her teammates but feels conflicted by her sexuality and feelings for fellow teammate Donna.  Donna is the only player who has aspirations beyond basketball, since she has a full scholarship in pre-med at Xavier college in New Orleans.  Sidney is an elite player from Los Angeles who had to move to Arkansas for family reasons and is seen as a major threat by Starra.  Rounding out the starting five is April who is two-months pregnant despite making a pact with her team to abstain from sex during the season and now might be banned from playing by their coach.

Starra is the main protagonist with the largest character arc.  Her insecurities drive her to an act of sabotage against Sidney that is seen as a major betrayal and alienates Starra from her team.  Starra needs to learn humility and embrace the sports tropes (also life tropes) that “There is no ‘I’ in Team” and “A Team is Only as Strong as its Weakest Link”.

The other main story arc relates to April’s pregnancy.  At the start of the play, in solidarity for April’s situation and attempting to convince Coach Pace to allow her to play, all the girls appear at practice wearing “pregnancy bellies” stolen from Home Economics class.  Thinking that it is her only way to play, April’s journey involves deciding whether or not she wants to terminate the pregnancy and if so, how to go about doing it.

The title of the play is named after a basketball strategy (Flex Offence) that involves constant ball movement between the players as they shift positions around the court and set screens to block out their opponents, until one player cuts into an open position to get off an uncontested shot.  The strategy is first drilled during practice and then executed in the State Finals game at the end of the play.  The Flex strategy becomes a metaphor for teamwork, cooperation, self-sacrifice and trust of your teammates.  As the girls learn to perfect the moves throughout the play, it signifies their own personal growth both as athletes and individuals.

As with many Crow’s Theatre shows, the stage was almost “in-the-round” with the audience sitting on three sides.  Half of a basketball court fills the stage with the lines of the backboard lit up to highlight the basket.  Benches on either side of the court where the team sits during games are moved around to form other locations including the seats of a car and sofas from Sidney’s living room.  Of specific interest were a few tuffs of grass emanating from the edge of the court closest to our seats.  These were meant to signify the “dirt courts” that Starra was used to playing on.

It was interesting hearing during the post show talkback that none of the actresses were professional basketball players and came with varying experience in the sport.  They went through a brief training “boot camp” to learn the lingo and moves but there would be no guarantees (just like in professional sports games) whether any particular shot would be made from night to night.  I found a PDF of the script for the play and thought it was fascinating how this was accounted for in the stage directions.  Even in the initial practice, for each shot there are a pair of directions and dialogue separated by a slash that would be performed if the shot was made versus if it was missed.  This culminates in the climax of the play when the final deciding shot is taken in the State Finals.  Depending on whether the shot is made or missed, an entirely different ending has been prepared.  In sports, as in life and now in the live theatre experience of this play, you don’t know from night to night how things will play out.  Regardless of whether LadyTrain wins or loses their big game, the team shows grit, resilience and teamwork, making their coach proud.