By Armita Rohani
On November 9th and 10th, East’s Drama Club put on a spectacular performance of Agatha Christie’s Murder on The Orient Express. After two months of productive rehearsals and great dedication to their roles, 25 remarkable actors displayed their hard work and talent to the audience, including our sophomore lead, Maddie Heim (Hercule Poirot). This unforgettable play started off with the death of dear, innocent, little Daisy Armstrong (Giuliana and Evelyn Lanzone), murdered by Bruno Cassetti, or, as per his new alias, Samuel Ratchett (Krish Parashar). Five people died as a result of their grief; eight more were affected by their deaths. These eight people (Carmen Lee-Bennett as Mary Debenham, Chia Ahaneku as Colonel Arbuthnot, Phoebe Auquier as Mrs, Helen Hubbard, Christian Ryszka as Hector Macqueen, Alli Hagen as Princess Dragomiroff, Elizabeth Buckingham as Greta Ohlsson, Kate Powell as Countess Adrenyi, and Emily Haile as Michel) went on to get their rightful revenge on Cassetti by murdering him in cold blood–eight stab wounds to his chest, enough for all of them to express their anger and grief. However, the ingenious detective Hercule Poirot solves what seemed to be the unsolvable case, alongside his beloved companion, Monsieur Bouc (Luca Ballarin).
Filled with action, drama, mystery, and deceit, alongside the characters’ fear, suspicions, ignorance, and lies, this production was an undeniable success. The plot twists, cliffhangers and suspense were the cherries on top for this performance. The actors’ portrayal of raw emotion was amazing, the accents were spot on, and the entire play had audiences at the edge of their seats! The comedy amidst the tension was flawless and the makeup, costumes and set pieces were perfect. The bond these characters and actors share is indescribable, whether it was between Greta and the Princess or the Colonel and Ms. Debenham. The relationship between Mrs. Hubbard and Michel was hilarious, as were the flirtations. Poirot and Bouc also share such a meaningful friendship, and I absolutely loved the line “He is Belgian” for its humor and how it brought out the closeness of their acquaintanceship. Stage crew’s work was immaculate as well, especially in the flashback scenes, during which the lights turned blue and the sound effects brought the setting to life.
The greatness of any theatrical performance always ties back to the actors who bring the characters to life, and it is without a doubt that these actors were sensational. They fit their roles perfectly, whether it was Krish’s portrayal of Rachett’s selfishness, Elizabeth’s energy as Greta (“Haha, it’s true!”), Carmen’s professionality and disposition as Ms. Debenham, Chia’s display of the concern Arbuthnot had, or Christian’s expressions of nervousness and anxiety that Macqueen was constantly in, everyone was perfect. The energy between Luca and Maddie was as real on stage as in real life; the romantic jokes were also hilarious, whether it was Mrs. Hubbard flirting with Bouc (“You know, you remind me of one of my husbands. Which one? The next one.”) or with Michel (“Well, you bring me those crisps and I’ll give you a lesson.”). The secrets and privacy that Mary and Arbuthnot shared from the start were as mysterious and caring as it could have been. Nonetheless, there were several powerful scenes in this performance as well, many of which were delivered by Poirot himself: “You have all been telling me lie, after lie, AFTER LIE. You planned it together, you killed together, and in the name of justice, YOU PLAYED GOD TOGETHER. I cannot support this, I cannot agree to this!” The sheer anger, disdain, and betrayal that Poirot faces during these scenes was expressed so beautifully by Maddie Heim. You can feel how deeply troubled and torn Poirot is as he has to decide what justice is and who must pay for it.
Alongside any story is the deeper meaning behind it; for this murderous performance, it was the definition of justice. We as people need to ask ourselves: does another bad deed bring justice? How can a murder seem so wrong yet so right? Was revenge really the best solution? The answer is that we don’t know, and rather, we define justice for ourselves, and our actions are living proof of it. We need to question what is right and what is wrong in every situation to find a balance between good and evil, and Hercule Poirot demonstrates that, saying, “But at night, in the darkness, when I am all alone, I ask myself again and again if this was justice; if I did the right thing.” This quote was so powerful and meaningful; it started off the play and was the line that ended it, bringing it all together in a fabulous full circle ending.
Nevertheless, the performance of Murder on the Orient Express was sensational and I can only say how lucky I am to have witnessed such an amazing show. Thank you to the actors for their incredibly hard work, to everyone who came to see it, to those who contributed so much time and effort, to stage crew for letting this all run smoothly, and to Ms. Lovullo and Sophia Cuva for directing such an unforgettable play. Be sure to further support the drama club and its actors by coming to see this year’s musical, Anastasia, in March 2023!
