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The Game is on!

 

   Playwright Ken Ludwig’s “The Games Afoot” is Vertigo Theater’s way of spicing things up for this season’s entertainment. With director Mark Bellamy’s theatrical tricks and wicked sense of humor leading this performance, you might want to make a quick stop at Vertigo before the performances come to a stop on December seventh.

The first act of “The Games Afoot” is mainly the exposition. It introduces the main plot with a mix of well established characters however, the play has the misfortune of starting off with cheesy jokes and not-so-scary-effects that leave to the beginning of the performance being a little dry. This does not last long though, as they quickly make up for it with the introduction of a murder.

In the opening seen American actor William Gillette (acted by Blair Williams) finishes his performance of a Sherlock Holmes play and is nearly killed when a man from the crowd shoots in his direction. After receiving a shot to the arm, Gillette suspects one of his cast members might have hired an assassin, so he invites them all to his mansion to find out who the culprit may be.The cast plays their cards well when keeping the identity of the killer(s) a secret throughout the performance. They manipulate the audience’s judgment by creating convincing identities, and thus establishing a sense of what each character will introduce to the plot. For example, Daria Chase (Jan Alexandra Smith) is a surprise visitor to Gillette’s mansion, and her obnoxious behavior and constant pestering makes it clear that she will not make it far in the play. Ludwig shows that Daria can be even funnier when she is dead rather than alive by bringing her back to life at unexpected moments. This is arguably the funniest joke throughout the performance. When William Gillette and his best friend Felix Geisel (Kevin Rothery) discover her dead for the first time, they provide genuine reactions, and immediately call the police. Shortly after the call, hilarious Inspector Goring (Karen Johnson Diamond) brings comedy and mystery to the show with her ridiculous laugh and lack of perception.

   Costumes bring out a character’s personality even when that character has little or no lines, and I am happy to say that director Mark Bellamy made no exceptions this time around. Every costume matched the corresponding character’s behavior perfectly, and when this is combined with the set and lighting, an appropriate sense of mystery is established. The music and sound effects created drama at some moments, but were not used often. If there was music kept constant throughout the performance it would definitely improve the audience’s experience. Needless to say there were many dry moments in the play, but it was easily made up for with the outstanding character development and suspense which makes “The Games Afoot” a must see performance.

 

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