The twists and turns of Tom Stoppard’s delightfully silly and wickedly clever play The Real Inspector Hound are given life by a nimble cast in this fun Dunedin Repertory Society production.
An amusing send-up of Agatha Christie’s famous whodunit The Mousetrap, The Real Inspector Hound also pokes fun at the noble art of theatre criticism and the play within a play genre, to hilarious effect.
Directed by Brent Caldwell, the production features a skilful cast, led by Kimberley Buchan and Dylan Shield in the roles of rival theatre critics Moon and Birdboot.
Buchan and Shield are delightful as the venal critics, bring the humour to the fore as they give scant attention to the rather peculiar play unfolding in front of them, speculate on absent colleagues, boast of their influential positions, and craft over-egged descriptive phrases for their reviews.
Fellow cast members Josh Black, Cait Gordon, Rosie Collier, Chris Cook, and Chris McCombe work well together to keep the nonsensical action of the murder-mystery moving along.
Ellie Swann does a lovely turn as the housekeeper Mrs Drudge, pottering about and interrupting important moments to great comic effect.
Things really take a turn for the bizarre, when the reviewers find themselves helplessly caught up in the on-stage action.
The Real Inspector Hound plays out on a nicely evocative set, with eye-catching period costumes.
All in all, this production really does justice to a superb piece of theatrical satire. Recommended.
- The Real Inspector Hound continues at The Playhouse until Saturday.
