Philadelphia Professional Premiere of Broadway Hit The Play That Goes Wrong Comes to 1812 Productions

-Courtesy of Bryan Buttler Media Relations, LLC
photo by Mark Garvin

1812 Productions, Philadelphia’s all comedy theatre company, is preparing for the professional regional premiere of The Play That Goes Wrong, Broadway’s smash hit comedy. The production, a farcical murder mystery and a play within a play that is conceived by award-winning company Theatre Mischief, has played to sold-out audiences on Broadway and the West End. Now, it comes to Philadelphia at Plays and Players Theater from April 27 through May 21, 2023.

“What a thrill it is to bring Theatre Mischief’s hysterical and wildly popular play to 1812 Productions, featuring an all-Philadelphia cast,” said Jennifer Childs, Producing Artistic Director. “Right now, more than ever, the world needs more comedy. I am looking forward to hearing our audience’s laughter as they experience The Play That Goes Wrong.”

This Olivier Award-winning comedy is a hilarious hybrid of Monty Python and Sherlock Holmes. After benefitting from a large and sudden inheritance, the inept and accident-prone Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society embark on producing an ambitious 1920s murder mystery. Welcome to opening night of The Murder at Haversham Manor, where things are quickly going from bad to utterly disastrous. With an unconscious leading lady, a corpse that can’t play dead, and actors who trip over everything (including their lines), it’s “a riotous explosion of comedy” (The Daily Beast) and “tons of fun for all ages” (HuffPost).

This all-new staging, directed by 1812’s own Jennifer Childs, features some of Philadelphia’s finest performers, including Scott Greer, Melanie Cotton, Tony Lawton, Sean Close, Justin Jain, Eli Lynn, Karen Peakes, and Ian Peakes. The creative team includes costume designer Janus Stefanowicz, lighting designer Alyssandra Docherty, props designer Liz McDonald, scenic designer Colin McIlvaine, and sound designer Damien Figueras.

Single tickets to The Play That Goes Wrong are currently on sale at 1812productions.org. The production is part of the The Phoebe & Otto Premiere Series; the series sponsor is the Wyncote Foundation. Honorary producers are Debbie & Bob Fleischman.