Still going strong in its 98th season, Whittier Community Theater entertains loyal locals with a suspenseful, somewhat slow-paced, but mostly fine production of Agatha Christie’s mystery classic And Then There Were None.

When eight strangers arrive for an island weekend off the coast of Devon, little do they know that a murder spree is about to ensue, though it doesn’t take long for the assembled guests (and the pair of servants hired to tend to their needs) to find out why their unknown, unseen host (the perhaps not coincidentally named U.N. Owen) has gathered them in the most isolated of spots.

Each of them has committed murder, a prerecorded voice informs them, a murder that could not be proven in a court of law, but a murder nonetheless, and each will soon be receiving a punishment fitting not only the crime, but the “Ten Little Soldier Boys” nursery rhyme hanging above the mantelpiece.

In order of appearance (and not of permanent disappearance), the about-to-be bumped-off are:

Fred and Ethel Rogers (Bill Crisp and Candy Beck), butler and cook accused of killing their former employer; Vera Claythorne (Justine DeAngelo), one-time governess said to have allowed her young charge to drown; Philip Lombard (Norman Dostal), a soldier of fortune who may have caused the deaths of twenty-one men in his charge; Anthony Marston (Bryant Melton), a spoiled playboy whose reckless driving could on at least one occasion have proven fatal; William Blore (Guy C. van Empel), a retired police inspector whose false accusations may have led to a man’s death in prison; General Mackenzie (Stamford Hill), an elderly gent accused of having sent his wife’s lover to his death; Emily Brent (Patty Rangel), a repressed spinster whose Bible-thumping may have led to a young woman’s untimely demise; Sir Lawrence Wargrave (Rick Werblin), a retired judge whose penchant for the death penalty may have sent an innocent man to the gallows; and Dr. Armstrong (Richard De Vicariis), a Harley Street doctor said to have caused a patient’s death by operating on her while drunk.

The fewer the number of remaining guests, the clearer it becomes that before long only two survivors will be left in the otherwise empty house…and since one of them must perforce be the killer, only one man (or woman) is likely to remain standing.

Diehard Agatha Christie lovers will be pleased to learn that Whittier Community Theatre has opted for the recently released “original 1939 ending” (as opposed to the much-produced version Christie wrote to cheer WWII audiences), though its impact is lessened by director Lenore Stjerne’s decision not to lower the curtain on the carnage and let its impact sink in before raising it again for curtain calls, and when (at the performance reviewed) a previously stunning background seascape got replaced by a blue screen and company logo as the final victim lay lifeless, the impact loss was doubled. (Having a murdered character get up and walk off stage in full view of the audience is another directorial misstep).

On the plus side, Stjerne elicits generally solid performances from all ten murderers, Dostal’s dashing Philip, van Empel’s spirited Blore, and Rangel’s sin-condemning Miss Brent standouts among them, though by unleashing the hysterics so early on, an otherwise effective DeAngelo has nowhere to go when they’re really needed. (The killer, on the other hand, may take bonkers to the extreme, but a little scene chewing befits a certified nutcase.)

A nearly inaudible David Thomforde completes the cast as boatman Fred Narracott.

Scenic designer Mark Frederickson’s seaside living room and terrace are sleekly rendered (snaps shared by properties designer Chris Montgomery) and Michael Eiden has costumed the cast in one mid-20th-century gem after another, from daywear to tuxedos to a slinky scarlet evening gown. (Richard Lindsey’s lighting, on the other hand, could use some fine-tuning to better suit the time of day and means of illumination.)

And Then There Were None is produced by Steven Sanborn, who doubles as stage manager. Margie Wann is assistant stage manager. Frederickson is technical director. Nancy Tyler is sound tech.

Even if you’ve seen And Then There Were None on stage before (or viewed any of its first three film adaptations), you’ll enjoy checking it out at Whittier Community Theatre if only to witness its climax as Agatha Christie originally intended it to unfold.

Whittier Community Theatre, The Center Theatre, 7630 S. Washington Ave., Whittier.
www.WhittierCommunityTheatre.org

–Steven Stanley
March 6, 2020
Photos: Noah Estrada

Tags: Agatha Christie, Los Angeles Theater Review, Whittier Community Theatre