The Company of the Second North American tour of CLUE - photo by Evan Zimmerman for MurphyMade. Courtesy of the Fabulous Fox
– By Cate Marquis –
How about a classic mystery for the start of spooky season? “Clue: Live on Stage” brings the murder mystery fun of the classic board game, movie starring the late great Tim Curry, to the Fabulous Fox Theater stage, Sept. 22 – Oct. 4, 2026. The musical is based on the hit movie, which was based on the popular Hasbro board game, and the whole thing is inspired by Agatha Christie who-dunnits, but this is not just stage version of the movie. “Clue” is not a musical but a fast-paced one-act farce, with no intermission but filled with humor, twists, and a pace that might leave you breathless, both from laughter and just the sheer speed of the action.
The story takes place in 1954 at Boddy Mansion, a massive, rambling manor house in rural New England. It all begins with the various characters arriving at Boddy mansion, one by one: severe Mrs. White (Sarah Mackenzie Baron), sexy Miss Scarlet (Camille Capers), dimwitted Colonel Mustard (Nate Curlott), talkative Prof. Plum (Kyle Yampiro), jumpy Mr. Green (TJ Lamando), and preening Mrs. Peacock (Madeline Raube). None of them knows the other guests, and all of them clueless as to why they are there.
They are greeted by the butler, Wadsworth (Adam Brett), and directed to a reception room to await the mansion’s mysterious owner. Also on hand are the Cook (AT Sanders) and maid Yvette (Zoie Tannous), and later on, a Cop (Kebron Woodfin) joins the crowd. And, of course, Mr. Boddy (Joseph Dalfonso).
It is a murder mystery but like the movie, this show leans heavily into the comic, so it is all fun and murderous games in farce style. Yep, it is goofy, silly but very fun, if you can just go with it’s madcap flow. The crazy comedy was written by Sandy Rustin, based on Jonathan Lynn’s screenplay, with additional material by Hunter Foster and Eric Price. Casey Hushion directs this touring production.
Suddenly, there is a murder in the mansion. Was it Col. Mustard in the library with the candlestick? Miss Scarlet in the dining room with a knife? Or it could be any one of the other colorfully-named characters with an array sometimes unlikely-seeming murder weapons in the spacious mansion’s various rooms.
The dialog is funny, fast and the humor includes a degree of physical comedy, particularly from rubbery-limbed, hilarious Adam Brett as the butler Wadsworth. All the cast are good, but Adam Brett is pretty much the lead character and carries the heaviest humor load, with a mountain of quips and delivering some impressive physical bits as well.
Lights go out, doors slam, smoke and fog obscure things, and there is a little gunfire. The action takes place on a single stage set, with rotating sections on either side, that turn to reveal the many rooms needed for this comic mystery. There is actually more than one death, so the possibility of multiple culprits. And everyone has a motive, as we learn when we find out the reason each was called to the mansion to start with.
Because it is farce, everything is fast, including the dialog. That can pose a problem at times, as it is hard to catch every word, and some humor can be lost in the verbal shuffle. Some audience members might find that frustrating, even irritating, while others will just be carried along by the comic craziness.
For anyone who does not care for farce, this may not be the show for you, but if you are up for its fast and furious humor and total silliness, “Clue” can be loads of fun, all wrapped up when the mystery is solved and the murderer or murderers feel the long arm of the law as the cops take them away.
“Clue” is on stage at the Fabulous Fox through Oct. 4, 2026.
© Cate Marquis
