Great Cast and Design In A Minor Piece of Material: “Something’s Afoot” At The 5th Avenue

Something’s Afoot
5^th Avenue Theatre
Through March 24, 2024

Some of our town’s most iconically funny musical theater performers join together in the 5^th Avenue Theatre’s production of Something’s Afoot. Anne Allgood, who I think can do anything on stage, is a past-master of the totally-serious-hysterical-delivery needed in something as campy and silly as this production.

If you are an Agatha Christie reader, you already know what happens in her book, And Then There Were None. It’s one of her most famous murder mysteries and so you may only have read this one – or heard of it. The title hints at what this evening of silliness will become.

It’s a weekend in the country (sorry, Sondheim). Guests start arriving at a mansion reached by a small land bridge, virtually all of them expecting only themselves and the mansion owner. Yet, more keep coming until there are ten guests. To their immediate surprise, the mansion owner is found shot before anyone has had the opportunity to greet him, and a storm cuts them all off from the mainland and strands them there.

The ensemble chosen to perform are a wonderful collaboration of folks, with Porscha Shaw, Brandon O’Neill, Jason Weitkamp, Ashley Lanyon, Yusef Seevers, Adam Standley, Allen Fitzpatrick, Sarah Rudinoff, Jonathan Luke Stevens, and Allgood. Lanyon’s soaring voice and Stevens’ cute as a button sudden appearance from a random boat on the lake make for a sweet love story.

It’s lovely to see Standley and O’Neill back on stage. Allgood and Fitzpatrick have a storyline that is so promising that it’s a shame to have to have it cut short! As far as demises go, these two also have the very best moments.

Rudinoff is also so much fun to see back on stage, where she takes on the role of detective, with a huge looking glass and an eye for detail. She gets to cavort on stage in a dance with huge pointed staffs that look a little terrifyingly ready to cause real mayhem.

The songs are fine, certainly well-sung, but unmemorable; the choreography by Jimmy Shields is really appropriate and keeps things moving. The first act is the laugh-a-minute, as it should be. However, as the mysterious murders keep happening, the second act gets sparser and sparser. The energy sort of peters out.

This is a piece where a more-unusual character is an integral part of the story. The beautiful and deadly set by Carey Wong, and lighting by Robert J. Aguilar and sound design by Haley Parcher, have a lot of work to do, with intricate planning and exacting timing. Also, the sumptuous 1920s style costuming by Deb Trout gives flash and glitter to the production.

It is a family friendly production, as long as kids understand that murder is fun in this show. There is little mystery in this mystery, except for how and when someone might die. If you’d like an evening of simple silliness, then this show’s for you.

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