Deathtrap Review

Deathtrap

Published: October 25, 2007

By STARLA POINTEROf the News-Register

Whodunit? What did they do? And was it really done?
Those are the questions that delight audiences who see "Deathtrap." The Gallery Theater production slays us with its biting comic lines, sets hearts racing at dramatic moments and leaves us hanging in the end.

Or does it?

We're never quite sure in this show, and that's its charm. Ira Levin weaves a story that's as perfect as the fictional script that bears the same title as Levin's creation.
The play works as well today as it did when it was written almost 30 years ago, although one of the key relationships is not as likely to shock as it was back in 1978. That relationship isn't convincing in this version, anyway.

But it's the convoluted storyline we're here for, after all, and that works as well as a pair of Houdini's handcuffs. It tugs us first one way and then the other, and that's a lot of fun.
Chris Benham - with an intensity reminiscent of Richard Dreyfuss -does a marvelous job as Sidney Bruhl, a once-successful playwright who has hit a very long, very dry spell. Seemingly out of the blue, Bruhl receives a juicy script that's sure to be a hit - for its writer, a novice who attended one of the workshops the older man teaches in order to pay his bills.
Under the influence of jealousy, how far will a person go? the play asks. And is his action an anomaly, or an evil part of his personality that's just been hidden under a mask of normality?
Charity Benham plays Myra Bruhl, the playwright's wealthy wife, who helps her husband carry out his plans even though her heart isn't in it. Benham does a good job portraying the feelings of betrayal and disbelief that arise when someone we think we know suddenly reveals his dark side.

Jeff Sargent gives Clifford Anderson, the novice playwright, a slightly uptight edge as types away at his masterpiece. And Steve Cox is fine as Porter Milgrin, Bruhl's lawyer, the "fifth character" who does the yeoman's job of moving the tightly woven plot along.
But it's April Wilcox who steals the show as Helga ten Dorp, the psychic who's just moved in next door. With wild hair and a wildly European accent, Helga breezes in to tell us what's happening - she sees things much more clearly in her mind than we see them in front of us, as it turns out.
Or does she?

Gallery's "Deathtrap" is well-directed by Carolyn McCloskey, with assistance from Vanessa Terzaghi and Walt Haight; and technical work by Linda Weaver, Kate Pierce, Craig Luis and Robert Osterhout. It's a good example of teamwork, with more people behind the scenes than on stage.

The show features a great set by Adam Ewing, Bill McCloskey, Susan Parker and Richard Weaver, with additional touches by Jeaniie Kleinschmit and Matt Meador. The special lighting effects are generally good, but I wish the lightning was more contained - the flashes make it look as if Bruhl's study has no roof.

Phil Darling contributed the props that bring "Deathtrap" to life - a variety of murder weapons and torture devices. Bruhl collects them because he is a writer of mystery plays; a love of plays and theater in general must be Darling's reason.

Or is it?