Review: CLUEDO at Her Majesty’s Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre

Reviewed by Barry Lenny, Sunday 22nd March 2026.

Cluedo, the stage production, is based on the 1985 black comedy film, Clue, which was, in turn, derived from the murder mystery Cluedo board game that many of us have played at some time. It was first manufactured by Waddington in England back in 1949 and was advertised by the logo, "The Great Detective Game". My own copy, yes, I have one, was made in Australia under licence in the late 1960s. The screenplay for the film was written by Jonathan Lynn and the book for the play, adapted from the film, was by Sandy Rustin.

The murder-mystery genre has always been extremely popular, and the occasional spoof, Murder by Death comes to mind, has been equally well-received. This particular production runs at an amazing pace, thanks to the director, Luke Joslin, with almost every line getting a laugh, and constant physical comedy adding to the hilarity.

It is that cliché, the dark and stormy night, thunder and lightning already being depicted as soon as the auditorium opens, leading into the performance. It is 1949, and six guests arrive at sprawling Boddy Hall, each greeted by the butler, Wadsworth, and the ‘French’ maid, Yvette, where the murder of their blackmailing host, Mr. Boddy, is soon committed, a gunshot in the dark signalling his demise. Other murders follow in quick succession. Colonel Mustard, Prof. Plum, the Rev. Green, Mrs. Peacock, Miss Scarlet, and Mrs. White immediately become suspects, with a range of possible weapons: a candlestick, rope, lead pipe, spanner, revolver, and dagger.

The butler, Wadsworth, played brilliantly by Grant Piro, is the pivotal character, the ringmaster of this circus of murder and mayhem. He begins by introducing each of the characters as they arrive, their real names hidden behind those assigned by their host. Lib Campbell, delightfully cheeky as Yvette, yes, in a skimpy French maid’s outfit, flutters around serving drinks to them as they arrive. Mr. Boddy, portrayed by Joshua Monaghan, eventually joins them and is quickly dispatched. He reappears in several other minor roles, later. Octavia Barron-Martin completes the household as the no-nonsense cook. Nat Jobe also turns up in several minor roles.

The blustering Colonel Mustard, Adam Murphy, the deregistered doctor, Prof. Plum, David James, the nervous  Rev. Green, Laurence Boxhall, the po-faced Mrs. Peacock, Genevieve Lemon, the seductive Miss Scarlet, Olivia Deeble, and the aloof Mrs. White, Rachael Beck, form a wonderful ensemble of quirky characters, augmented by the cook, maid, and others. Each member of the cast throws themselves, often literally, into their roles. Those playing the minor characters, too, show as much enthusiasm and talent as the central seven. There is not a weak link anywhere and the audience never stopped laughing.

The board game is set in nine rooms, with secret passages. James Browne’s impressive set cleverly uses sections of the main entrance hall, each with a door into the hall, that pull out to create the other rooms to accommodate the characters as they move around the mansion. His distinctive costumes, naturally, match the colours of the board game characters. Jasmine Rizk’s lighting is important to create atmosphere and tension, and Sean Peter’s score, filled with dramatic phrases and fast tempi, add to the pace. Movement Director, Danielle Evrat, even adds stylised dance sequences.

There is so much happening in the 90 minutes of this performance that you will likely want to go back and see it a second time. It only runs from Wednesday to Sunday this week, with matinees on Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday, then has a final performance in the evening of Monday 31st March, so you’ll need to move quickly if you want to see this fun-filled performance.

Photography, Jeff Busby.