Review: AGATHA CHRISTIE'S MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ at Zaantheater

One famous detective. A bunch of extraordinary characters. All aboard the Orient Express!

In a stage adaptation by Ken Ludwig, REP Entertainment brings the classic whodunnit to life in the theatre, in a direction by Jasper Verheugd.

The stage is set, and quite spectacularly, I must add. A cinematic staging by Joris van Veldhoven (set design + costume design) and the uncanny lighting design by Uri Rapaport, we are sucked in the world of intrigue, mystery, riddles and inevitably, a brutal murder. Also, the usage of some dramatic classical music pieces, really add to the excitement. 

Famous detective Hercule Poirot, a marvelous role by Remko Vrijdag, is both the narrator who addresses the audience directly (hello broken 4th wall) as he is the leading character. As Poirot, he enters the train while on vacation,  where a brutal murder occurs under his nose. He cannot help but solve this vicious crime. As he tries to solve the puzzle and questions all the travelers aboard the train, slowly we learn of the ill fate of the victim.

 

Remko’s Poirot is a wonderful mix of a French (pardon - Belgian) gentleman, a humorous Master of Ceremonies and a groundbreaking detective. His entre-nous’ moments with the audience are most amusing.
This ensemble piece is like a movie come to life.  Each of the cast give the audience a different piece of the puzzle and emotion. Friend of Poirot and worried director of the Orient Express Bouc (Wilbert Gieske), the ever dry-witted Gerrie van der Klei as Princess Natalia Dragomiroff, the dramatic Mrs. Caroline Hubbard (comedic timing queen Lone van Roosendaal) aside from the rest of the fascinating characters.

All roles are casted very well. The play really comes to life in an old-school way, but in the best of ways.  The piece itself was written – of course- by Agatha Christie back in 1934 in the form of a detective novel, yet the plot still intrigues to this day and is very well suited for the theatre. You still want to know what happened, the whodunnit feeling is ever present.

REP Entertainment has transformed the well-known story into an exciting and humorous play, full of hysterics, wonder and drama, and keeps the attention until the final revelation and last piece of the puzzle. Bravo.

Photo credits: Willem van Walderveen

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