Review: WITNESS FOR THE PROSECUTION at ICT Rep

CHRISTIE’S COURTROOM DRAMA ONSTAGE AT ICT REP

When you mention playwright and novelist Dame Agatha Christie to the average theatre audience member, they quickly come to mental images of her classics The Mousetrap, Ten Little Indians (now titled And Then There Were None), or The Unexpected Guest.  But Christie’s courtroom drama, Witness for the Prosecution, is one of the Queen of Crime’s finest, and ICT Rep is summoning Wichita audiences to the historic Sedgwick County Courthouse this last weekend and next to see how this drama unfolds.

While visiting London in 2018, ICT Rep producers Stan and Julie Longhofer saw a production of Witness for the Prosecution staged at London County Hall, where the production is still running. The couple was so mesmerized by the performance that they began pondering how to bring the show to life in one of Wichita’s historic landmarks.  With director Paula Makar at the helm, the show lends authenticity to the proceedings and invites the audience to cast their judgments.  Seats can even be booked in the jury box to help deliver the final verdict.

Author Christie wants you to follow every word, every shift in point of view, every judgment and resolution that she has her characters make.  Then she wants to surprise, startle, and thrill you.  This was the method used when she wrote her novels and plays. Christie called Witness for the Prosecution her best play and most theatre critics agree.  Christie always said she preferred writing for the stage; “It is much more fun.”

From the beginning of the slippery plot twists, it doesn’t take audience members long to realize that the set-up and characters are pure Christie.  The familiar English gentleman in love with the justice system, the battleaxe housekeeper convinced she knows who the murderer is and the mysterious foreigner whose behaviors and motives remain secret until the very end.

Based on a 1927 short story, the play follows Leonard Vole, a young cockney man accused of murdering an older woman, Emilie French, in cold blood to get his hands on her money.  Vole claims that French was like a devout aunt to him.  French had recently changed her will to make Vole its sole beneficiary, and there is evidence to support the thought that he is guilty.  Vole appears to have a rock-solid alibi in his sophisticated actress wife Romaine, a German refugee. Despite Leonard’s protests of innocence, the evidence of the case seems to be against him, especially with the help of those fiercely determined to see him hang.  As deep secrets are revealed, we must decide Leonard’s outcome.  Is he guilty or innocent?

As Leonard Vole, actor Hagan Simmons expresses the charming appeal that makes women want to mother him.  Simmons never fails to deliver a well-polished performance.  Amy Shelden Loucks has elaborate fun playing the femme fatale Romaine, who alarms her husband’s legal team with her frankness. Loucks' poise and candor make her especially fun to watch.  Vonda Newby-Schuster, a Wichita favorite, is brilliant as (Miss) French’s ruffled housekeeper Miss McKenzie, always huffing with displeasure and disapproval.  Newby-Schuster also plays the bristled secretary to Sir Wilfrid at the top of the show.

Much credit must be given to Matthew Gwinner as defense barrister Sir Wilfrid Robarts and Michele Janssens as prosecutor Mrs. Helena Myers.  The two love to compete against each other, although Robarts suggests that Myers is more concerned about victory than justice. Both Gwinner and Janssens are top-notch performers.  Their robe-swishing lively banter, sharp cross-examinations, and heated speeches kept us entwined in the story. Local attorney Jordan Sickman has the solemnness and seriousness down pat for his character of presiding judge Justice Wainwright despite being humorously baffled by Vole’s gift of a cat brush to (Miss) French.

Each ensemble member has an intense presence on stage which helps to feel fully immersed in the courtroom setting and feeds on your confusion and suspicion. Many of them play dual roles.  At times I found myself thinking that Dr. Wyatt (played by Eddie Spurlock) had something to hide or why Greta, the court secretary (played by Chelsie Penner) has a crush on Mr. Vole.   Lydia Pirilli was convincing as Miss Clegg, the forensic assistant but was stunning as the blonde “other woman” at the end of the play.   Chris Loucks produces a solid performance as Inspector Hearne.  Hunter Bartholomew and Jenee’ Saffold round out the rest of the ensemble as a detective/warden and Clerk of the Court respectively.                                          

Director Makar makes certain that everyone in the courtroom is fully invested even having the silent jury be seen.  Makar’s driven stage direction turns into a fine and subtle polished piece of stagecraft.  Costume design by Julie Longhofer not only takes the show’s place and period into account but works quite well.  Mood lighting (designed by Stan Longhofer), ominous music, and sound (designed by Kirk Longhofer) including courtroom murmurs and gasps add to the show’s atmosphere. Combined with the Longhofer’s inspired usage of the historic location, the show is criminally outstanding.

The somber setting of the historic Sedgwick County Courtroom is crucial to the feeling of immersion. Throughout the play, Lady Justice (nicely created by Julie Longhofer) sits above Judge Wainwright’s bench and the courtroom walls are an art gallery of portraits of Queen Elizabeth and previous judges.

But please note, the seats are the least comfortable chairs I have ever sat on.  Do yourself a favor and bring a pillow to sit on. You’ll thank me later.   ICT Rep’s Witness for the Prosecution is captivating and shouldn’t be missed.

The play runs through Sun., April 6.  Thursday, Friday and Saturday at 7:30pm.  Sunday at 2:00pm and 7:30pm.  Limited seating.  Tickets, if available, can be purchased through https://ictrep.org/witness2025.

ICT Rep has announced their 2025-20026 season to include:  

Jukebox for the Algonquin (August 2025), Amadeus (October 2025), The Past, A Present Yet to Come (November 2025), Silent Sky (January 2026) and Sweat (March 2026)