Review: Mousetrap at The Alexandra
When I saw that Mousetrap was bringing the 70th anniversary tour to The Alex in Birmingham is seemed like an opportunity not to be missed! I read lots of Agatha Christie books as a teenager and had always fancied seeing Mousetrap on stage. I have never seemed to get around to it though before now.
The plot, set in a guest house which gets cut off in the snow, is full of everything you would expect from the Queen of Whodunnits. Following the inevitable murder, we discover that there is more to each character than meets the eye. As each secret was revealed and back story uncovered, the cogs kept whirring, trying to figure out who the guilty party was. We were kept guessing until the very end – I didn’t figure it out!
The cast is full of familiar faces such as John Altman (‘Nasty Nick’ from Eastenders) who plays a fantastically funny Mr Parvacini and Gwyneth Strong (Cassandra from Only Fools and Horses) who is the bad tempered Mrs Boyle. The entire company drew us in and the time flew as we were totally absorbed as the plot unfurled before us.
If you haven’t seen Mousetrap before I would definitely recommend you book tickets. A timeless production that brings everything so many people have loved about Agatha Christie’s crime writing to life. It really is no wonder that this is the world’s longest running play!
Mousetrap runs at The Alexandra, Birmingham until 5th November.
