Review: CLUE National Tour at Durham Performing Arts Center

Based on Jonathan Lynn’s 1985 film adaptation of Hasbro’s popular board game of the same name, six guests have been invited to attend a mystery get-together at a large, somewhat secluded mansion. Upon arrival, each guest is provided an alias, situates in the house, and is given a deadly weapon. They begin to sort out their lives without revealing their true identities, and a common thread appears to be government work and blackmail. They are introduced to their blackmailer, Mr. Boddy. Quickly, when the lights go out, Mr. Boddy turns up dead. The gun goes off, but no bullet hole is found in the body. The group is frightened yet determined to discover the identity of the murderer.

Despite the movie flopping at the box office upon its initial release, it went on to develop a considerable cult following. A stage adaptation written and directed by Hunter Foster premiered at the Bucks County Playhouse in 2017. A revised version written by Sandy Rustin later debuted at the Cleveland Play House in early 2020. After going on to play at the La Mirada Playhouse and Paper Mill Playhouse, a national tour launched earlier this year.

To give you a bit of background about me, I’ve been a fan of this property for as long as I can remember. The original board game was a favorite of mine as a kid. I also really love the movie. If you ask me, it’s even more fun to watch if you play it with one of the three endings selected at random. So when I heard about a stage adaptation being in the works, I thought it seemed like a perfect idea. After all, murder mysteries in general are a popular genre, especially for the theatre. The film being set in a mansion feels like a natural setting for a stage play.

Sandy Rustin’s adaptation remains faithful to Jonathan Lynn’s screenplay, but she does add her own twists to certain aspects. Some of the jokes are carried over from the movie, but there’s also some brand new ones. So what you see on stage isn’t a carbon copy. For those wondering about how this show ends, I won’t give that away other than how it’s done is really clever. Under the direction of Casey Hushion, a former producing artistic director of North Carolina Theatre, she keeps everything moving at such a brisk pace. Lee Savage’s set mainly consists of the hallway of Boddy Manor, but several of the other rooms do make appearances. Everything looks so elegant.

The film had quite an all-star cast doing stellar work. Luckily, everyone in this tour successfully makes these characters their own. James Taylor Odom (who went on for Mark Price at the performance I attended) is so memorable as Wadsworth, the uptight butler who is the driving force of the play. Each of the six suspects gets their own opportunities to shine. John Treacy Egan as Colonel Mustard, a puffy, pompous, dense, blow-hard of a military man. Joanna Glushak as Mrs. Peacock, a neurotic church-going wife of a Senator. Tari Kelly as Mrs. White, a morbid and tragic woman. Mary McNulty, (who went on for Christina Anthony) as Miss Scarlett, a dry, sardonic D.C. Madam. Jonathan Spivey as Professor Plum, an academic Casanova. Although the standout to me would have to be John Shartzer as Mr. Green. With that character being as accident prone as he is, it leads to such comedic highlights.

This show is already proving to be popular for schools and theatre companies to produce. I have a feeling that it'll continue to be for many years. If you’re a fan of the Clue property overall, you’re definitely gonna get a kick out of this. Although if you’re mainly a fan of murder mysteries in general (especially in recent years thanks to Knives Out and/or Only Murders in the Building), you should still get a kick out of this. A tight 80 minute comedy that’ll leave you laughing and guessing “Who Did It?” from beginning to end.

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The national tour is currently playing at the Durham Performing Arts Center through September 8th. For more information, please click here.

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