Theatre will never be the same for me after watching Agatha Christie’s, Witness for the Prosecution at London’s county hall.
Rating: 4.5/5
This is it, the ultimate immersive theatre experience – ideal if you’re a fan of judicial drama, intimate audiences, and hair-raisingly-good performances. And yet, still safe enough if you’re not keen on audience participation.
“Intense”, “captivating”, “magical”, are merely some of the words used to describe the play, including by the actors themselves.
The Story:
Meet Leonard Vole, played by Joe McNamara, a young gentleman who has just been accused of murdering a wealthy widow by the name of Mrs Emily French.
Why is this play any different from other West End successes and Agatha Christie marvels? Well I bet you’ve never found yourself in a courtroom theatre, and much less in London’s County Hall.
The Set:
When you step into the courtroom you’re met with breathtaking high ceilings and tones of red and brown that command attention and fill you with a sense of duty. And if that were not enough, there’s a giant Lady Justice to remind you of where you are.
This multi-sensory show makes the most of the courtroom space and seating to deliver the ultimate hair-raising experience. From large seats fitted with individual tables to the built-in-speakers that whisper and chatter throughout the performance, there’s not a dull thing about this court of law.
Not only is the venue unique in style, but it also offers a circular view of the stage which grants most audience members a clear and enticing experience. So that when things heat up (and oh, they do) every emotion is visible from every angle.
“There’s nowhere to hide. So every intention, every objective, every feeling that you have, no matter how small, is seen by an audience member. It makes you up your game,” said Emer McDaid who plays Leonard’s wife Romaine Vole.
While the actors might be, quite literally, at the centre of attention, the audience too is watched and considered throughout the performance.
The Interactive Experience:
The production cleverly brings the audience into the play, by creating an interactive role for 12 lucky ticket holders.
The jury are sworn in at the beginning of the play, just like in real life (or perhaps Suits and The Good Wife if that’s where you get your judicial fix from). After each member has taken an oath, the jury watches as the events of the play and the trial unfolds until the very end where they are asked to reveal their verdict.
The props that are used are simple but effective, making you feel the atmospheric changes of day to night, the foggy London nightlife of the 1920s, and even a wistful stream of smoke stretching out into the tall room.
The Acting:
There are no unnecessary theatrics, not a drop of emotion is wasted or overdone.
“The audience is like another character,” explained Joe, “Another character to be influenced, to be won over, to be swayed one way or the other.”
And indeed you do feel involved, drawn in, responsible for the outcome of this character’s life, even if all you do is sit and watch and take the magic in. If a table is slammed then you feel the vibrations, if someone screams you can hear it deep inside you.
Emer McDaid commands the stage from beginning to finish with a striking look, a fantastic voice that rings out through Romaine’s German accent, and most of all, exquisite confidence.
“There’s a multitude of ways you could plain Romaine by reading the script itself. I wanted to play her as playfully and arched as possible”, Emer said.
“What’s really wonderful about Romaine is that she changes her intention to every single person she encounters. Her emotional intelligence and her IQ and EQ are so high that she has the ability to change how she is with every single person on stage.”
Emer, a big Agatha Christie fan, was drawn to the play because of the character of Romaine herself.
“It’s really really different to have writing of that generation portray such a strong powerful female character. And you know, in this day and age especially, I think it’s really important to see how strong her role is and how much she changes things throughout the play.”
Indeed at times, I found myself trying to figure Romaine out more than I was trying to figure out who had committed Mrs French’s murder… because even if you think you’re an expert on Christie, even if you’re a Miss Marple or a Poirot, you’re unlikely to guess what’s coming in Witness for the Prosecution.
“What I like about it is that it draws in a lot of different types of people,” explains Joe. “Regular theatre-goers, people who have maybe watched a bit on the telly, people that want to come because the building is incredible, big Agatha Christie fans, people who love courtroom dramas.”
If there’s ever a slip it goes almost unnoticed. When you’re so absorbed by the tension and drama bubbling up in the room around you, a wrong word or a wrong step seems like a product of emotion rather than a break in character.
The one thing that does detract from the heat and the passion of the play is the set changes. The production has highly choreographed scene changes where actors step in to manipulate the set for the appropriate scene, walking in and out through the big double doors on either side of the room, while Downton-Abbey like music plays, creating a sense of period urgency.
While those sitting directly in front of the judge’s seat might be more unaware of these set changes, the rest of the audience who can see in and out of the doors might feel jarred or pulled away from the play in these short instances.
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The Return to the Stage:
The show reopened on 14 September after having been forced to close in March of 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“This was my first theatre gig back since lockdown and theatre is my first love. To be back in the room, to read a fantastic script in-person with everyone was just nothing short of magic. It really was a special, special thing”, confided Emer.
This feeling of magic was shared by other castmates, including Joe who was forced to delay his West End debut due to the pandemic.
“I was cast a while ago, pre-pandemic and was waiting to get started and then you-know-what happened. It was almost two years later that we finally got in the room and did a read-through.
“When we read it aloud for the first time it was like something magical happened. Obviously, the cast are incredible, the play is magic, the words speak for themselves. But also, we had been waiting for so long, and theatre, in general, had been dark for so long. I think that actually, by the time we all got to be back in there together, we realised how much we all missed it.”
Indeed, the joy of watching a live play in an incredible setting and an incredible city had me grinning under my mask for the entirety of the play.
After a year that has been so hard on so many of us, the cast remarked on how much the audience seems to be enjoying the show’s return.
“I think there’s something about a live experience, particularly with this play that’s so immersive, and where people are learning things. I think people really have missed live experiences in an audience. People have been shouting things out, and it’s been amazing. We’re all really grateful for it.”
“Some jury members are far more interactive in their vocalisations. Sometimes people even shout and hiss at me as Romaine,” Emer shared. “And other jury members take their roles very seriously, they note everything down. Depending on how they are we do have to work much harder to get them on our side, we do have to change our objectives depending on which kind of jury we get every night.”
If you’re looking for a show that will give you the suspense, laughter, and an undeniable sense of duty, don’t miss Witness for the Prosecution.
Performances are scheduled from Tuesday to Saturday at 7:30 pm, with 2:30 pm matinees running Thursday to Saturday and a Sunday matinee at 3 pm.
From Tuesday to Thursday students can snatch up tickets for £25 with the under 26 promotion (valid until 20 December). Tickets can be purchased on the official website.