Agatha Christies Black Coffee Review
Agatha Christie’s Black Coffee
Theatre Royal Windsor
7-18 January 2014
http://www.theatreroyalwindsor.co.uk/
Reviewed by Veronika Royle
The coffee might have tasted bitter, the show however is delightful!
When it was announced that I was getting tickets for the premier of Black Coffee by Agatha Christie I was excited to see this, her first Hercule Poirot play.
Poirot, the meticulous pear-shaped detective from Belgium, first appeared in 1920 in the novel The Mysterious Affair at Styles. It wasn’t until 1930 that she tried her hand at bringing Poirot to the stage herself. Black Coffee was the result and had a successful run, first at the Embassy Theatre, and later on the West End where it ran for several months.
Black Coffee takes place in the living room of Sir Claud Amory whose formula for a powerful new explosive has been stolen. When he is mysteriously killed when the lights are turned out, everyone becomes a suspect and Monsieur Poirot along with his companion Hastings are brought in to solve the mystery. The story is a humdinger and kept me guessing until the end. It is no mystery why Ms. Christie is the most successful mystery writer of all time.
Using theft as the premise, Agatha Christie’s “Black Coffee,” a Hercule Poirot mystery, creates interesting intrigue with the eccentric and slightly paranoid Amory family and a cast of other colourful characters against the backdrop of post-World War I stately home. Following the theft of a valuable scientific formula, Sir Claud Amory, the miserly familial patriarch, assembles the family: his sister Miss Caroline (Liza Goddard), his son Richard (Ben Nealon), his daughter-in-law Lucia, his niece Barbara, the mysterious Italian visitor Dr. Carelli (Gary Mavers) and other domestics including Tredwell, his butler and his Personal secretary Edward Raynor, to inform them of the theft.
No one has been allowed to leave the home since Sir Claud discovered the formula has gone missing so he asserts that the thief is still there with the stolen property in his or her possession. He informs everyone that he has summoned Belgian detective Hercule Poirot (Robert Powell) to help him solve the mystery. In a last attempt to right the wrong that was done him, Sir Claud orchestrates a way for the property to be returned and the thief to remain unknown. What ensues is a series of unfortunate events that complicate the situation even more. When detective Poirot arrives, not only has the formula not been returned and the thief not discovered but Sir Claud is dead. With his friend Capt. Arthur Hastings they work to get the bottom of the issue which isn’t easy as they soon discover that many in the family have more than enough motive to want Sir Claud dead.
The cast is rounded out by Dr. Graham the local physician who declares poison as the cause of death and Inspector Japp of Scotland Yard who help to tie together the loose ends of this mystery.
The cast at Theatre Royal Windsor is up to the challenge and under the astute guidance of director Bill Kenwright, gives us a jolly good show. Kudos must go to the set designer for honouring the time period beautifully, as well as to costumer designer for creating a very well-dressed cast.
The stage sets and costumes were very well done and reflected the 1930’s era in a “smashing” way. The story is a great mystery complete with red herrings to mislead you as to “who-done-it.” Probably the most surprising dialog was the humour. I know one doesn’t think of humorous dialog when you think of Agatha Christie, but it is here. The nice thing for us is that it isn’t as “dry” as much of the British humour is, in other words, they got it!
The only fault I found in the evening was Dr Carelli’s accent which constantly changed, but never quite reached the desired Italian accent.
This delightful mystery plays at Theatre Royal Windsor until 18thJanuary 2014!
After Windsor, the tour will visit venues including Cambridge, Bath, Richmond, Stoke, Cardiff, Edinburgh, York and Guildford. So Run, don’t walk! to get your tickets for this 5 ***** theatre play!
Rating: 5/5 
For more information or to book tickets click here.
