It is always an awkward moment when something goes awry on stage. The cast panics, the audience are caught between gasping and laughing, and a general sense of awkwardness fills the theatre. 

It is somewhat refreshing then to watch a show where everything that can go wrong goes wrong and everyone is in on the joke. 

The Play That Goes Wrong enters its 6th calendar year in the West End and remains one of the most popular shows to see in London. And for good reason. 

Following the fictional Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society as they attempt to put on a performance of The Murder at Haversham Manor, shenanigans ensue before the actors are even on stage with backstage crew entering the audience space for their help.  

The main story is unrelenting, with the cast putting on the show having to endure every actors’ worst nightmares. Lines are forgotten, props are misplaced and every now and again someone suffers a severe injury. Yet the show must go on, with everything building towards an utterly farcical ending.  

Constant shouting and foolery may not be everyone’s cup of tea when they sit down in a grand auditorium, but thanks to clever pacing and great writing, everything feels just right.  

All praise must go to the writers and directors who are able to balance the fine line between smart humour and unbearable nonsense. Everything is meticulously planned and perfectly executed to the point where you forget everything is scripted and you genuinely believe a character has knocked themselves unconscious or lost it at an audience member. 

Jokes that are set up early in the first act are paid off throughout the play and by the end the chaos we witness is earned and utterly mind blowing to watch.  

Performing a play within a play can be tedious but the current crop of actors starring in the West End, are more than up to the task, staying true to their characters traits and stereotypes, even when they are seemingly putting themselves deliberately in harm’s way. 

It is a remarkable achievement to pull off a show like this and it must be seen live to be fully appreciated in all its glory.   

The Play That Goes Wrong is a show that gets everything right.