The Play That Goes Wrong
Movie • 2012
ReportSynopsis
The play in question, at the centre of its conceit, is titled The Murder At Haversham Manor; purporting to have been written by Susie H.K. Brideswell, in reality, a fictional author, and performed by the equally fictional Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society, it’s a 1920s murder mystery comedy that opens with the slaying of Charles Haversham on the night of his engagement to Florence Colleymoore. The CPDS are gamely attempting to do it justice, but suffice to say they put the amateur in ‘amateur theatre company’, and the result is slapstick and farce.
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Needs More Answers
Are animals abused?
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thenumbereleven
It's probably for the best the drama society lost the dog they were supposed to perform with.
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thenumbereleven
Several "improvised" kisses where one of the actors is uncomfortable and/or actively trying to get away.
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Does someone vomit?
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thenumbereleven
Depends on the performance. Act 2 opens with a character advising the audience to seek medical help, and one of the stagehands may puke shortly afterwards.
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Is a woman brutalized for spectacle?
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thenumbereleven
The female lead gets knocked out by a door, dragged out a window, has her costume stolen by a rival, gets in a fight a stagehand, and finishes her performance tied up and in her underclothes. It's more than the rest of the cast have to deal with, and some of the injuries can be quite shocking at first, but ultimately it's all very slapstick.
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Does someone die by suicide?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)
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Is there domestic violence?
National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233)
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thenumbereleven
An actress flubs a line and implies her character is in love with her brother, but the other actors swiftly move on.
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Is there blood/gore?
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thenumbereleven
The play-within-a-play has some exceptionally fake blood effects that the actors are amused by.
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Are there jokes about sexual assault on men?
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thenumbereleven
A female actress tries on multiple occasions to get her male coworker to kiss her during a scene. It's not part of the script they're performing, and he's quite uncomfortable with this.
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Are there "Man in a dress" jokes?
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thenumbereleven
A male cast member briefly plays a female role after an actress is knocked out. Naturally, the script makes several references to the character's gender during it, but he doesn't change wardrobe and nobody is repulsed.
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Is there gun violence?
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thenumbereleven
One character in the play-in-a-play is shot dead offstage, and the climax involves two characters holding each other at gunpoint. Fortunately the drama society uses prop weapons, and no actors are ever in danger of being shot for real.
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Does someone say "I'll kill myself"?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)
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thenumbereleven
References to suicide, no attempts or threats.
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Is someone restrained?
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thenumbereleven
A drama society member is tied up and gagged backstage. Another is handcuffed to furniture during the performance before the performers realize they've lost the key.
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Does a major character die?
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thenumbereleven
In the play-within-a-play? Yes. Of the actual drama society members? No.
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Does the abused become the abuser?
National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233)
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Does a woman get slapped?
National Domestic Violence Hotline (1-800-799-7233)
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Does someone cheat?
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thenumbereleven
An affair is central to the plot of the murder mystery. ...Or it would be, if the play was going right.
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Does a family member die?
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thenumbereleven
The drama society members and their families are fine. The play they are performing is a murder mystery, and someone's brother dies.
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Does someone die?
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thenumbereleven
The play's a murder mystery. The drama society members performing it all survive.
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Does someone spit?
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thenumbereleven
Frequent over-the-top spit takes, often on other people's clothes or faces. Sometimes over the audience.
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Is someone kidnapped?
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thenumbereleven
A member of the drama society is knocked unconscious and tied up backstage by a jealous rival.
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Is the fourth wall broken?
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thenumbereleven
Varies from performance to performance, but generally cast members can be seen around the auditorium before the show trying to fix various problems. One actor starts an argument with the audience as a whole in the middle of the show (don't be in the front row if you don't want to get singled out!), and act two starts with a warning that the audience should seek medical treatment.
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Does someone have a meltdown?
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thenumbereleven
Sort of...? A female character is prone to having "hysterical episodes". There are no (real-world) stage directions on what this should look like, and nobody in the (fictional) cast knows how to act, so the improv rarely looks anything like a meltdown.
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Does someone become unconscious?
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thenumbereleven
The members of the drama society are frequently knocked out during the performance. It can seem pretty real, until the rest of the cast start improvising around their bodies.
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thenumbereleven
A male stagehand briefly takes on a female role after an actress is knocked out. Naturally, that part of the script makes the most references to the character's gender, but he rolls with it. He does not put on a costume.
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Does someone attempt suicide?
National Suicide Prevention Lifeline (1-800-273-8255)
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Is there audience participation?
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thenumbereleven
The cast "fix" problems around the venue before the the show begins and at intermission, and rope audience members in the front rows into helping. There is a very long pause in the middle of the show where an actor loses a prop - it is expected that a member of the audience heckles him, and he will argue back in character.
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Does it have a sad ending?
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thenumbereleven
That play sure does go wrong, but all members of the drama society survive the performance.
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