By: Madison Davis
I’ll be honest, when I decided to watch CSI’s production of “This Murder Was Staged,” I didn’t quite know what to expect. All I knew was that it’s a murder mystery where, and I quote, “everyone and their mother (literally) has a motive to want the demanding director gone.” Nevertheless, I was blown away by absolutely everything about this show and I happened to see the the final performance on April 25.
“This Murder Was Staged” begins with the (supposed) murder of Sinclair Hemmings (Gary Fleming), the directer of the play-within-a-play, being discovered. Who did it? Well, Detective Drake (Nelie Ramos) believes just about anybody in the room, including the audience, could have.
As revealed throughout several flashback vignettes, the cast and crew all hated Sinclair’s obnoxious and demanding presence , so they are all, appropriately, suspects. The actors all have amazing comedic timing, and the portrayal of each character leaves a lasting impression.
At the show’s halfway point, we get what some may call “a classic end of Act 1 twist” that turns out to be only the tip of the iceberg in context! Moving forward, the story becomes even zanier and more complex, given the already self referential and quick witted humor.
Several additional suspicious characters gain more prominence, with basically everyone getting a moment to shine. Notably, a lot of ad-libbing with audience interaction occurred, such as harsh theater critic Dane Magraff (Ugonna David Okieche) accusing the audience because we’re “already guilty of bad taste in theater” and Drake’s questioning for information on Carl P Janitor’s (Robert Yost) whereabouts.
Speaking of Carl, he has a very shocking connection to Sinclair revealed later on. Multiple significant plot twists, one after another are also disclosed within the final moments of Act 2, none of which can easily be predicted.
Although showings have concluded, I still don’t want to give too much away in the event that a recording is posted on the CSI TV YouTube channel for those who couldn’t make it to any of the performances. Once that happens, I cannot recommend watching this masterpiece, a comedy that keeps you on the edge of your seat, enough.
