"The Play That Goes Wrong" is nonstop laughs as chaos unfolds onstage in Massachusetts

CBS News

04-04-2025

It's a disastrous night at the theater but that's a good thing at
"The Play That Goes Wrong,"
which is now playing in Stoneham, Massachusetts.
During "The Play That Goes Wrong," the cast deals with everyone onstage mishap imaginable. The production at Stoneham's Greater Boston Stage Company is a play within a play, where the actors portray actors.
"What I think is surprising for a lot of people is that what they're seeing is actually just an exaggerated version of what happens in theaters every single day," said cast member Mark Linehan.
From the set coming apart to an unconscious leading lady, just about everything that could go wrong, does.
"It is really a masterwork of physical comedy and comic timing," said cast member Ceit Zweil. "And it's the kind of comedy that isn't done quite as much anymore."
"It is a deeply challenging show technically but when you fill your cast with stunning comedic actors and your design team with people who are just so prepared to take on that challenge? It is just pure joy," said director Tyler Rosati.
But it's far from easy to perform.
"I don't think I've ever had to have this much strength training in order to do a show, in which I am having a nonsensical phone call, while completely supporting my body weight from falling off the set, using only my 10 fingertips," said Linehan. "So this is pretty new for me."
The set is designed to come apart a little at a time, with secrets hiding in plain sight.
"I wanted something that looked beautiful to start, I wanted an audience to walk in and be like, 'I am going to see a stunningly gorgeous Agatha Christie murder mystery' and then we are going to slowly but surely dismantle this gorgeous set into a pile of nothing before your very eyes," said Rosati.
And Linehan said the audience should expect the unexpected.
"This show is nonstop laughs," said Linehan. "And the only time that you're not going to be laughing is when you're going to be gasping because you can't believe what just happened."
It's the crew you don't see that makes it all happen.
"Backstage choreography is one of the great joys of theater," said Zweil. "I sort of sometimes wish the audience could see all the amazing stuff happening backstage because it is delightful to experience."
Rosati agreed, saying, "For anyone who has done theater knows that stage managers and your team backstage are some of the hardest working people in the business. This show takes so long to set back up because there are so many pieces."
"The set falls on us but they make the set fall safely," said Linehan. "So we couldn't do this without them."
You can see "The Play That Goes Wrong" at the Greater Boston Stage Company in Stoneham through April 16.