A double bill evening from Agatha Christie

A Double Bill evening from Agatha Christie comprised of two short plays, “The Rats” and “Afternoon at the Seaside”; both from a publication called “The Rule of Three” which is part of The Collection.  They were very different and both had surprise endings.   “The Rats”: a whodunnit complete with a body in a trunk in a locked room, and “Afternoon at the Seaside” told the story of a thief operating in the area and was set against a backdrop of a sunny afternoon on the beach.   Both were well presented and appreciated by the audience.  

The sets were excellent, very realistically recreating a luxury apartment in the 1950s and a beach setting, complete with bright and colourful beach-huts.   The props were all appropriate and well used by the cast.

The costumes were good and of high quality.  There was great attention to detail ranging from cocktail dresses and evening suits for “The Rats” to the sundresses, more dated outfits for the older ladies, swimsuits and beach shoes etc for “Afternoon At the Seaside”.  

The lighting was effective throughout and well controlled.  The sound was good.  

There was lots to enjoy in this pair and they were good choices, complementing one another: The Rats: an adulterous pair Sandra and David meet and are caught “…..like rats in a trap.  Like the rats we are”, when they are locked in a room with a dead body.  And Afternoon at the Seaside, set at the beach, when a necklace is stolen and an Inspector is called in to investigate and question the assembled suspects. There was pace and precision in the performances and some physical comedy as well. This was a fun evening with some mental stimulation as the audience tried to work out what would happen, who will be/or has been involved and what the result would be.  

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