Returning to the New Theatre, Cardiff where the original tour begin in 2014, The Play That Goes Wrong, is a side splitting, belly aching, highly physical, extremely ambitious slapstick comedy that has taken both the West End and Broadway by storm.

The play introduces The ‘Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society’ who are attempting to put on a 1920’s murder mystery, but as the title suggests, everything that can go wrong… does. In fact, it all starts falling apart even before the actors take to the stage in the equivalent of a pre-titles sequence. As a member of the cast runs around the theatre looking for a dog called Winston and a Duran Duran CD, whilst stage hands recruit an unsuspecting member of the audience to help finish the stage construction with hilarious albeit disastrous results.

The show sits in a fine tradition of British slapstick, and of plays about theatrical blunders: from doors not opening to the same doors not closing, pictures and props falling off the walls and parts of the set collapsed with cast members on them and parts of the script repeated on a loop as members forgot their lines. There was barely time to breath in-between each joke, for the first time in my life I truly experienced what it means to laugh till it hurts.

It is difficult to single out a cast member as they each showed excellent knowledge of comedy timing and demonstrate the physical prowess to perform their role while having to think about so many different things happening on stage.

The Play That Goes Wrong delivers laughs that come thick and fast, Mondays’ Opening night audience at the New Theatre, Cardiff absolutely roared with laughter and where buzzing as they left. If you have recently found yourself in need of cheering up make sure you catch the show as it tours the UK in 2018. It’s the perfect remedy to making all your worries and cares disappear for 2 1/2 hrs that is!

Tour dates and ticket information can be found here: http://www.theplaythatgoeswrong.com/uk-tour/tickets