Get among thrill of Rotorua Little Theatre’s production of The Mousetrap

The Mousetrap cast during rehearsals - pictured in the foreground is Ian Stabler (left) and Helene Nicholson, and in the background (from left) Ashton Kusabs, director Richard Rugg, and Alasdair Hay. Photo / Craig Blank

Audiences of the next Rotorua Little Theatre production will be able to get among the thrill of a classic ‘whodunnit’ mystery.

The theatre is presenting Agatha Christie’s murder mystery play The Mousetrap on dates between June 9 and 24.

Director Richard Rugg says, in a nutshell, the show is about characters Mollie and Giles opening a guest house and a whole lot of strangers coming to stay there. A blizzard traps them all in, and one of them is a murderer.

The cast of eight has been rehearsing for about five-and-a-half weeks. Richard says rehearsals have been going great and it has been a fantastic process.

He says it is a cast with a lot of experience, and a number of them had gone straight from performing in Rotorua Musical Theatre’s recent production of Rent into rehearsals for this show.

Three ways he describes this upcoming show is thrills, and a fun time, with a great cast.

Richard believes The Mousetrap is a show the community will enjoy because in many ways it is a classic ‘whodunnit’, and people can try to figure out the murder mystery along the way.

The past two plays Richard has directed for the Rotorua Little Theatre have also been Agatha Christie ones - Spider’s Web and Witness For The Prosecution.

“This [The Mousetrap] is the third of what I would call Agatha Christie’s ‘big three’. It felt like a trilogy I had to complete. But I also enjoy the play, it’s a great one.”

He says The Mousetrap is the world’s longest-running play.

There will be 12 performances of the play held at the Shambles Theatre between June 9 and 24, with matinee shows on Sunday, June 11 and Sunday, June 18. For more information and tickets, go to Eventfinda.

The Details

- What: Rotorua Little Theatre presents Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap

- When: Friday, June 9 to Saturday, June 24

- Where: Shambles Theatre

- Tickets: Available online at Eventfinda