The “Clue” ensemble shows off the play’s slapstick-like comedic style as it prepares to make its Columbus debut at the Ohio Theatre Tuesday. Credit: Courtesy of Jim Fisher | CAPA Communications Manager
Based on the 1949 Hasbro board game and 1985 film of the same name, the stage comedy “Clue” will drop by the Ohio Theatre Tuesday through Sunday as the sixth stop on its first national tour.
Presented by the Columbus Association for the Performing Arts, also known as CAPA, the play will run at the Ohio Theatre — located at 39 E. State St. — and feature the nostalgically beloved characters found in the original “Clue” board game. John Shartzer, who plays Mr. Green in the play, said despite attendees’ likely familiarity with the storyline, seeing the murder mystery unravel in front of one’s own eyes will make the show its own distinct viewing experience.
“You kind of know what’s going to happen, but you’re gonna have a good time, I kind of think that’s what I want that takeaway to be,” Shartzer said. “Like, ‘I’m a little bit stuck in the mystery, but there’s no mystery as to whether or not I’m going to enjoy myself.’ I think that’s very important. We’re telling stories, and we’re entertaining people. I think we got that in spades.”
Shartzer said the show’s fast-paced and slapstick-like humor is as fun for an audience as it is for the performers.
“There’s a lot of physical stuff that happens and, in this particular play, we kind of have permission to play these characters in a very over-the-top way,” Shartzer said. “You kind of get to play a cartoon sort of version of what it means to be a real person.”
Lisa Minken, CAPA’s marketing manager for Broadway in Columbus, said the play uses the characters’ familiar quirks, as seen in the board game and cult-classic movie, to exaggerate the story’s comedic effect.
“You’re gonna recognize the characters on stage — Colonel Mustard, Mrs. Peacock, Miss Scarlet — and it’s just taking each of those characters that you know from the board game and, of course, the movie, and just amplifying the comedy and just how crazy these kinds of character traits are and amplifying that for the humor,” Minken said.
Minken said having any new production come to Columbus for the first time is exciting, but “Clue” is a special cause for elation because it marks the only nationally touring play the Ohio Theatre has hosted in 2024. More specifically, she said although CAPA gets to choose which touring shows are performed at the theater, this Broadway season has produced almost exclusively musicals.
“It’s making its Columbus debut here, so we always love when shows are here for the first time and, when we can, we love to put a play on the season,” Minken said. “So, I think people who like plays maybe a little more than musicals, this one is for you.”
Due to the nature of both the board game and film, Shartzer said the on-stage set has to accommodate frequent cuts from room to room, much like how a player would move their game piece to various locations within the house. He said this quality has resulted in a unique set design and accompanying dialogue.
“We have a really beautiful set that does a really great job — rooms will pop out of walls, they’ll slide and kind of puzzle piece around,” Shartzer said. “There’s a little theater magic there to kind of bridge the gap for what a movie could do necessarily that we couldn’t do. But we make it work. We make it work, where we hit all places, and all the right people die at all the right times.”
Based on the reactions he’s observed on the tour thus far, Shartzer said “Clue” is a worthwhile play for pretty much anybody.
“I think we’re gonna hit everybody here,” Shartzer said. “I think everybody’s had a good time. We have some big houses that we’re going to, but the theaters we have been to have been like 2,000-seat houses, and everybody in there is just lighting up. So, I think there’s something for everybody.”
“Clue” will open at the Ohio Theatre Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., with following shows running through Sunday. Tickets and more information about specific showtimes are available through CAPA’s website or Broadway Columbus’s Ticketmaster page.
