Premier Arts & Entertainment Coverage

Cluedo The Play

March 23, 2026

Review by Markus Hamence – Cluedo The Play. Performance date: Sunday 22 March 2026. Her Majesty’s Theatre, Adelaide, South Australia.

The full house opening night of Cluedo The Play in Adelaide (Sunday 22 March) at Her Majesty’s Theatre played out on stage like a perfectly orchestrated whirlwind – part murder mystery, part comic meltdown and entirely committed to the art of going just a little bit too far in all the right ways.

The audience was pumped for it before the first line even was uttered. You could feel it – that opening night anticipation buzzing through the crowd, a shared curiosity about how a board game built on suspicion and strategy could translate to the stage. The answer? With speed, swagger and a delicious sense of mischief. It was bonkers and absolutely chaotic.

“this is a show you buckle up for, sit back, surrender and just go in hell for leather… It’s a fully charged, high-energy hour and a half…”
Markus Hamence

Directed by the accomplished Luke Joslin, this is a show you buckle up for, sit back, surrender and just go in hell for leather… It’s a fully charged, high-energy hour and a half.

This production doesn’t tiptoe into its premise – it charges straight in. The story unfolds inside a mansion where nothing stays still for long. Secrets spill, alliances shift and bodies start appearing with alarming regularity. But rather than getting bogged down in the mechanics of ‘who did it’, the show leans into the chaos of ‘what just happened?’ – and that’s where it thrives.

The cast throws themselves into the madness with full-bodied commitment. Every raised eyebrow, every double take, every perfectly timed pause lands with precision. It’s a masterclass in ensemble work, where timing is everything and no one drops the ball. Characters are heightened, bold and unapologetically theatrical – exactly what this world demands.

Image Credit: Jeff Busby

Octavia Barron-Martin as Cook, Rachael Beck as Mrs White, Laurence Boxhall as Reverend Green, Lib Campbell as Yvette, Olivia Deeble as Miss Scarlett, David James as Professor Plum, Nat Jobe as Bobby, Genevieve Lemon as Mrs Peacock, Joshua Monaghan as Mr Boddy, Adam Murphy as Colonel Mustard and Grant Piro as Wadsworth are all freakin’ outstanding and play their respective roles deliciously. Each of their initial entrances are out-of-control large and dynamic stamping their character on the stage from the get go. White’s oversized hat and Peacock’s feather headdress both adding to the cast line-up, epic. Grant Piro is chaotically excellent, his bonkers swan song at the end is acting brilliance, Beck’s wide eyed unimpressed glares are down-right fabulously wicked, Lemon’s ‘Dame Edna’ vibes are theatrically hilarious… each actor brings excelled talent to the stage, not one has not invested into their character.

There’s a physicality to this production that keeps it constantly moving. Doors slam like punctuation marks, scenes flip with cinematic pace, and the staging feels like it’s alive – shifting, revealing, and resetting before you’ve had a second to catch up. It creates a sense of controlled chaos that pulls the audience right into the game. To say the stage hands and a/v have to have their fingers on the buttons is an understatement. If they missed their cues the show would have been over. It’s slick, fast and popping, all wrapped up in absurd hilarity.

“Grant Piro is chaotically excellent, his bonkers swan song at the end is acting brilliance…”
Markus Hamence

The set itself is grand and ever evolving. It practically is playing a character in itself. The Set Designer, James Browne, has created magic on stage with each of the ‘rooms’ being represented perfectly.

Visually, it’s slick without being over-polished. The design leans into the familiarity of the Cluedo world while still giving it a fresh theatrical edge. It’s playful, smart and just self-aware enough to keep the tone balanced between parody and homage.

What really lands especially well on opening night is the audience connection. The laughs aren’t polite – they’re loud, spontaneous and constant. There many eye glances shared with the audience. There’s a shared understanding in the room that this isn’t about solving the mystery before the final scene. It’s about enjoying the ride getting there and WE ARE playing the game.

“Fast, funny and just the right amount of unhinged…”
Markus Hamence

By the time the final reveal hits, it almost feels beside the point. The real payoff is everything that came before it – the ridiculous twists, the escalating absurdity and the sheer commitment to fun.

Opening night in Adelaide proved that Cluedo The Play knows exactly how to play its hand. Fast, funny and just the right amount of unhinged, it’s a night at the theatre that doesn’t ask you to think too hard – just to sit back and enjoy the beautifully controlled chaos unfolding in front of you.