Take 8 hilarious actors, put them on an amazing set that is like an out of control 9th actor, throw in a dumb murder mystery, props that break, set pieces that collapse, actors who get knocked unconscious, and stir it all together into one big concoction where anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and you have the Dio’s current entirely sold-out offering, The Play That Goes Wrong, where it’s never not 5:00.
Steve DeBruyne directs a fast-paced production on Matt Tomich’s collapsing set (he operates that too!), with costumes by Norma Polk, Props by Eileen Obradovich, and fight, stunt, and intimacy direction by Jen Pan and Joe Wright.
Henry Ballesteros, Dylan Benson, Michael Cicirelli, Kori Fay, Brendan Martin, Ash Moran, Maddie Ringvelski, and Antonio Vettraino comprise the cast and they are outstanding at playing the inept cast and crew of the British Cornley Drama Society’s production of The Murder at Haversham Manor. Their specialties are (not) playing dead, pratfalls, slapstick, dropping lines, slipping, sliding, banging, thrashing, yelling, understudying on the fly, and all sorts of nonsense.
Two of my favorite sequences in the show include a scene in which one actor gets ahead by one line but continues anyway, giving responses before questions are asked. In another, a handful of characters are caught in an endless loop of inane murder mystery dialogue because one character has forgotten their next line – it’s a scene so flawless I couldn’t catch my breath by the end of it from laughing so hard. See if you can figure who causes the commotion, Bravo.
Throw in a great meal and you have the perfect night out at the theater. To see if you can get on the waiting list for cancellations, call the theater after noon (517) 672-6009.
Very Highest Recommendation. Photo, The Dio Theatre and Entertainment.
Mostly Musical Theatre 
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