Queen of Crime Agatha Christie has dunnit again. And Then There Were None, directed by Robyn Nevin, has opened in Adelaide with all the hallmarks of a murder mystery classic. It’s the last stop on the national tour that has enjoyed successful seasons in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth.
Agatha Christie, the master of the murder mystery, architect of 66 novels, 150 short stories and 25 plays, has kept audiences guessing for nearly a century. While her famous sleuths often take centre stage, And Then There Were None plays by different rules: no detective, no easy answers, just a chilling descent into paranoia. This production brings Christie’s cunning to the isolated setting of Soldier Island, where secrets are as sharp as the lines of the house itself.
Ten strangers previously unknown to each other are lured to a remote island under false pretences. The play quickly establishes the oddities of each guest, with the cast building character flaws that make them increasingly difficult to like.
Dale Ferguson’s set design is clever and striking. The entire production takes place in a single room: a spacious, sun-drenched lounge on an island guesthouse, with floor-to-ceiling windows and the sound of seabirds and waves gently lapping in the background.
The area beyond the glass becomes a key part of the set: a wide balcony overlooking the sea. This sense of openness contrasts starkly with the growing claustrophobia felt by the characters, whose psychological entrapment mirrors their physical isolation on a barren, inescapable island.
While a single-room set offers creative control, the real challenge lies in adapting a sprawling mystery, originally set across an entire house and island, into one space. Nevin finds inventive ways to reveal each crime without leaving the lounge.
The pacing starts slowly as the mystery unfolds. In classic Christie style, suspicions rise, and the audience is left guessing. Near the end of Act One, a distant voice recording accuses every guest of murder. Shocked denials follow in a wave of collective and stunned disbelief.
In Act Two, the group’s camaraderie begins to fracture. The mood shifts from awkward civility to icy dread. Empathy turns to suspicion, then to paranoia and accusations. The shift is gradual but chilling.
A black coffee table sits in the middle of the lounge room, with (at the beginning!) ten little white figurines. As the story continues, the figurines are either found broken on the floor or go missing, echoing a familiar nursery rhyme…one by one.
Slowly, truths begin to emerge. General MacKenzie, played with gravitas by Nicholas Hammond, is the first to confess, and to calmly accept his fate; a release from a lifetime of guilt.
The ensemble is strong, with some standout performances. In the lead role of Vera Claythorne is Mia Morrissey. Her performance captures a slow and gripping deterioration of composure. She begins as a bright, vivacious young woman, but gradually descends into guilt-ridden despair, broken by what lies beneath her composed exterior.
Tom Stokes brings swagger and sardonic charm to the arrogant Philip Lombard. Jennifer Flowers is perfect as the self-righteous, pious and judgmental spinster, Emily Brent.
As requested by the playwright, the ending must remain secret. But needless to say, the audience is kept guessing right to the final moment. Few mysteries deliver such well-paced suspense as Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None. Don’t miss it.
Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None runs until 16 August at Her Majesty’s Theatre, 58 Grote Street Adelaide.
Tickets: https://andthentherewerenone.com.au/tickets/adelaide/
Website: https://andthentherewerenone.com.au/
Socials: https://www.instagram.com/andthentherewerenoneau/
Photo credits: Jeff Busby
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