"The Mirror Crack'd": theatre review

The Mirror Crack'd was light-hearted and entertaining, but thoughtful, murder mystery.

I saw this performed at the Grove Theatre in Eastbourne by their resident company on 7th November 2024. It was based on the book The Mirror Crack'd From Side to Side by Agatha Christie.

This clever production had Miss Marple discussing, from her armchair, aspects of the case, while these were acted out by the suspects (and the victim) on the other side of the stage.

The perfectly-timed plot kept people guessing right up to the denouement. In all its fundamentals it was the same as the book, departing from the text only because the two mediums are necessarily different. One of the audience thought that the slight pruning of both characters and plot elements made the play even better than the book.

One of the best things about this production was that, despite retaining the puzzle-to-be-solved element which is fundamental to the whodunnit genre, and adding some clever comedy, it also remembered that murder is dreadful. Someone loses their life. Others are bereaved. And there are often terrible and tragic reasons why the murderer has been driven to commit this horrible crime. These aspects are too often trivialised in crime dramas where a perfunctory “sorry for your loss” is immediately followed by “where were you on the night ...” Miss Marple is often played as a nosey old woman but last night she was compassionate and caring, repeatedly sympathising with suspects, including the killer. And the victim’s husband made a heartfelt plea at the end. All credit to director Mark Jefferis for making sure that every actor included this undertone of our shared humanity in their portrayal of their character.

Other highlights of the production included:

• The part of Miss Marple was read from the book by last-minute understudy Annie Bennett. This was one of the best readings I have ever seen. Annie played the part with elegance and style and crisp enunciation and, as noted above, brought depth to the role. Hers was a remarkable performance.
• Steve Scott played Chief Inspector Craddock as both pompous and ineffective, the classic detective’s sidekick.
• Becca Robinson as Dolly Bantry, ex-Lady of the Manor, was another delightful comic stooge, both awfully awfully posh but at the same time rather ridiculous.
• Claire Bolt’s Marina Gregg was another standout performance. Her treatment of the character included notes of vanity and arrogance papered over a deep sadness and all this somehow conveyed in a frozen look as if she was indeed the Lady of Shalott.

But fundamentally this was an ensemble performance and this team of actors really gelled. It’s not easy to play someone who is repeatedly ignored and overlooked but Camber Sand’s rendition of Cyril Leigh was perfectly judged. Eleanor Stourton as Cherry Baker won the biggest laugh for “Croydon”. Polly Sands was exactly right as victim Heather Leigh. Michael Keegan managed to find a real person beneath the stereotyped Italian butler. Tom Bolt wasn’t just a tower of strength as husband Jason Rudd but there was a hint that sometimes strong men can be controlling and manipulative. Both Emma Wingrove as Lola Brewster and Alyssia Smith as Ella Zielinsky played their nicely nuanced roles with subtlety.

The costumes, staging and technicals were unobtrusive and supportive, like the foundations of a building, essential to the strength of the production.

As is usual watching an Agatha Christie drama, I was entertained. But this performance also made me think. I look forward to more plays from this talented company.

This review was written by the author of Bally and Bro, Motherdarling  and The Kids of God