WaterTower Theatre Producing Artistic Director Shane Peterman and Associate Producer Elizabeth Kensek are proud to announce casting and creative details for the regional premiere of the hilarious THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG, by Henry Shields, Henry Lewis & Jonathan Sayer, the second production of WaterTower’s 27th Season and a co-production with Fort Worth’s Stage West Theatre.
An unconscious leading lady, a corpse that can’t play dead, and actors who trip over everything—what more could go wrong? Plenty, and you’ll have a grand time finding out, in the uproarious The Play That Goes Wrong, which runs from Wednesday, February 1st through Sunday, February 12th at WaterTower Theatre will then transfer to Stage West, reopening for Fort Worth audiences on Thursday, February 16.
Chris, the long-suffering producer/director/company member of the Cornley Drama Society, has tried valiantly for years to produce quality theater with his trusty band of loyal amateurs. Now, miraculously, he has managed to land the group a big-city theater for its thriller “The Murder at Haversham Manor,” a country-house whodunit in the classic tradition of Agatha Christie. Will things go smoothly for them? Nope.
Things seem to be on shaky ground right from the beginning, as stagehands are making last minute adjustments during the opening address to the audience. A music CD and a dog are apparently missing, and a mantelpiece falls. And things don’t get any better once the play begins. The cast and crew soldier determinedly on, as doors get jammed, actors get trapped, lines get lost, and set pieces fail. In short, it’s just what you’d expect from a hilarious, crowd-pleasing, full-on farce!
Director Harry Parker says, “A brilliantly crafted farce is every director’s dream, but one that has to be treated with the utmost care and respect! It’s our job to make everything ‘go wrong,’ but in exactly the ‘right way.’ We are all looking forward to creating hilarity with this spectacularly gifted cast.”
“Boy does it hit the funny bone…a rising tide of hysteria” – Time Out (London)
Henry Shields, Henry Lewis, and Jonathan Sayer met while training at The London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (LAMDA). All core members of Mischief Theatre, they had already worked in comedy together for several years before they started out as a writing team. The three’s first piece was The Play That Goes Wrong (winner – Best New Comedy – Olivier Awards and What’s On Stage Awards). The show started out on the London and Edinburgh fringe before touring the UK and internationally and then returning to the West End in September 2014, where it is still running. It also played on Broadway and had a US tour in 2018, and has been performed in over 20 other countries around the world. Peter Pan Goes Wrong was the trio’s second piece,
opening in November 2014 for a UK tour before a hugely successful West End season in Christmas 2015. Henry, Henry, and Jonathan recently adapted the script of Peter Pan Goes Wrong for the BBC, which was filmed with the original West End cast and broadcast to rave reviews on New Year’s Eve. They were invited back to wreak more havoc at the BBC in 2017 with Christmas Carol Goes Wrong on BBC1. The Comedy About A Bank Robbery marks their third writing project as a trio and earned them another Olivier Nomination. @mischiefcomedy and mischieftheatre.co.uk
For more information on WaterTower Theatre and upcoming productions, visit us online at www.watertowertheatre.org or call the Box Office at 972.450.6232.
How/Where to Buy Tickets:
Online: www.watertowertheatre.org
By Phone: 972.450.6232
Or In-person:
WaterTower Theatre at the Addison Theatre Centre
15650 Addison Road, Addison, TX 75001
Fax: 972.450.6244
Email: boxoffice@watertowertheatre.org
