We want to warn you that when you go see “The Play That Goes Wrong” at Springfield Little Theatre, things are, indeed, going to go wrong. Really wrong.
Don’t worry. It’s all part of the show.
“Things do go wrong and you will be surprised,” said co-director Beth Domann before rehearsal March 5.
“We don’t want to give away all the secrets, but yes,” co-director Marni Erwin added.
The award-winning and family-friendly comedy runs through March 17 at the Historic Landers Theatre.
A serious play within a hilarious play
“The Play That Goes Wrong” is a play within a play. Here’s the plot: The Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society is attempting to stage a production of “The Murder at Haversham Manor,” a 1920s murder mystery, and it goes disastrously — and hilariously — wrong. That means most of the actors are playing dual roles. They’re playing the Cornley actors who are playing characters in “The Murder at Haversham Manor.”
So, for example, Jamie Bower isn’t just playing Thomas Colleymoore. He is playing the actor Robert Grove playing the character Thomas Colleymoore.
“Robert is, like, the biggest ego that ever walked the face of the Earth and he is Cornley Polytechnic’s most talented actor,” Bower said. “So putting on that head to then do the show, it kind of keeps me a little loose. I can roll with this character and try not to make decisions I would, but decisions that he would that are like, ‘Oh, this is all about me.’ He’s very conceited. It’s kind of fun because I try not to be a jerk in real life, but he’s a professional jerk.”
Actors playing actors playing roles
The laughs in “The Play That Goes Wrong” come as the production of “The Murder at Haversham Manor” unravels in slapstick fashion and the amateur actors — whom Domann calls “the epitome of bad community theatre” and Erwin says think they’re actually good — push forward to finish the show.
“You have to play this show straight,” Domann said. “You have to play it as these are actors and they’re acting and they are doing this show, no matter what. … That’s the sticky wicket, to play it straight. You can’t play it for the laughs, you have to play it straight.”
“It’s so well-written,” chimed in Erwin. “It’s funny exactly as it’s written. We’ve just added a couple of new twists.”
For the actors, that means staying in the moment is vital.
“The challenge is for us to make it fresh and new every night, so we don’t anticipate everything going on,” said Joshua David Smith, who plays Dennis Tyde who is playing Perkins the Butler. “Don’t anticipate the laughs, just react if it happens.”
The show was so popular, they brought it back
If this sounds familiar, it might be because Springfield Little Theatre staged “The Play That Goes Wrong” during the 2022-2023 season. This is the first time the company has ever produced the same show in back-to-back years.
“We’d never seen audiences say, ‘Oh my god, we didn’t get a chance to get a ticket. I wish it was on longer,’” Erwin said. “We talked about it and decided to bring it back — and it’s close to selling out.”
While it’s the same play, there is still quite a bit of new going on. Bower and Smith are reprising their roles from 2023, as are Seth White (Chris Bean/Director/Inspector Carter), Corey Kilburn (Jonathan Harris/Charles Haversham) and Rachel Arp (Sandra Wilkinson/Florence Colleymoore). This is the first time Bower has ever repeated a character.
“It’s really fun because the hard part of figuring out character and all that is already done, so now I just get to play,” he said. “And the lines came back really fast, which I was thrilled about. Our set is slightly different, so I had to relearn blocking, but it was fun to do it. It’s been a blast.”
Understudies promoted for the second run
Samantha Lick and Jodianne Loyd are splitting the role of Annie Twilloit, with each actor taking a weekend. They were understudies in the cast last year. Joseph Galetti plays Max Bennett/Cecil Haversham, while Michelle Sturm and Pam White play the roles of stage crew.
And then there’s Erik Kiser, who plays Trevor Watson. He was also in the 2023 production of “The Play That Goes Wrong” in a behind-the-scenes role.
“I actually teched the show last year, and this year I’m an actor in it,” Watson said. “It was a joy to join the cast and to come and play and have fun with everybody. I’m one of those new faces, so I’m bringing my own spin to a character people know. The show, all the words, are the same as last year, but it is a slightly different show, so if you saw it last year, come again because it’s going to be a little different. We have new bits and new things that are happening that didn’t happen last year.”
The set is new this year, too, though it still features many of the same tricks. Bower, Sturm, Corbin Chaffin and Chuck Rogers did most of the work in creating the set.
Even the award nominations go a little bit wrong
The 2023 production wasn’t just well-received by Springfield audiences, it also earned accolades in the 2023 BroadwayWorld Kansas City Awards. Domann and Erwin captured Best Direction of a Play (Non-Professional) and Bower was named Best Actor in a Play (Non-Professional). Clayton Avery, who is not in this year’s cast, captured Best Supporting Performer in a Play (Non-Professional) for his role as Max Bennett/Cecil Haversham.
The awards caught everyone off-guard, in part because the early information referred to a “Jamie Bowers.”
“A friend of mine sent it to me and I thought, ‘What a coincidence. Someone else named Jamie Bowers is doing “The Play That Goes Wrong.” What are the odds?’” Bower said. “I had no idea it was even me. It was a surprise.”
Domann and Erwin had a similar reaction. They think someone nominated them, but they don’t know who. They were both shocked when they found out they’d won.
“I’m waiting for the check,” Erwin quipped.
“You’re going to be waiting a long time,” Domann replied with a laugh.
There's an element of danger to this comedy
Along with the comedy, “The Play That Goes Wrong” comes with an element of danger. There are Kilburn’s countless pratfalls, a fighting scene and a few other surprises we don’t want to spoil.
“A big part of it is we’re trying to keep everyone safe because it’s dangerous,” Erwin said. “It’s a dangerous show. People do get hurt, and so that’s been our big focus.”
It’s more of a dance routine than an improv comedy show.
“Everything is so technical,” Smith said. “This show is somewhat dangerous if you’re in the wrong place at the wrong time, so everything is meticulously rehearsed.”
“It’s very choreographed,” Domann said. “But any time you’re doing something like that there’s always a chance (someone could get hurt) so you just want to make sure that you have that all very, very well-rehearsed and everybody knows it. Corey’s the one I worry about the most because he’s always falling over something.”
Trust is also very important in a play like this.
“Not only with the cast but with the crew, too,” Bower said. “So many things we do hinge on one word, and everything’s got to be delivered perfectly so that everything can go wrong at the right time.”
Want to go?
What: “The Play That Goes Wrong” at Springfield Little Theatre
When: March 7-17; 7:30 p.m. Thursdays-Saturdays; 2 p.m. matinees Saturdays and Sundays
Where: The Historic Landers Theatre (311 E. Walnut St.)
Tickets: $22-$42; available at the box office, on the Springfield Little Theatre website or by calling (417) 869-1334
For more information: Visit the Springfield Little Theatre website or follow them on Facebook
