By Crystal McGough, Editor
TRUSSVILLE – ACTA Theatre’s production of “The Play Goes Wrong,” directed by Zach Skaggs, will hit the stage on Friday, Sept. 15, kicking off six performances spread out over two weekends.
“I love this show. I think it is probably one of the funniest, if not the funniest, show ever written,” Skaggs said. “It’s comparable in some ways to ‘Noises Off,’ where you kind of get the feel of the backstage workings of a show. … Each of our actors is actually playing another actor who is playing a character in a show. So, you get a peek into their acting troop, the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society.”
Written by Henry Lewis, Jonathan Sayer and Henry Shields, “The Play That Goes Wrong” tells the story of a group of actors who are excited for the opportunity to put on a murder mystery play called “The Murder at Haversham Manor.”
“The basic premise is that they’re putting on a show that’s maybe a little bit above their level,” Skaggs said. “They’re good actors and they’re very passionate about what they’re doing, but they’re reaching for something that is just a bit beyond their grasp, and you get to see the effects of that through the show.
“There’s a fun bit in the opening monologue where they talk about how proud they are to do this production because in the past they haven’t had enough actors to play all of the parts,” he added. “So, they really build it up that this is the first time they’ve really gotten everything right and this show is going to go really well for them, and you can see that hopefulness that they have.”
Apart from the actors, Skaggs said that the set, itself, is considered a character in the show.
“This is probably the most complex set that ACTA has ever had for a show,” he said. “I feel really confident saying that. We’ve put a lot of hard work into building it.”
Tickets prices are $18 for adults, $15 for senior citizens and $12 for students, and can be purchase in advance at acta.booktix.com. Performances are Sept. 15-17 and 22-24, with 7 p.m. showings on Friday and Saturday nights and 2:30 p.m. matinees on Sundays.
“I think it’s going to be a really high-quality production,” Skaggs said. “I’m super excited to share it with the community.”