Agatha Christie is best known for murder mysteries filled with suspects, secrets and unexpected twists.
But when Old Courthouse Theatre brings Christie’s Spider’s Web to the stage next week, audiences can expect plenty of laughs mixed in with the suspense.
The Concord community theater will present the mystery-comedy Oct. 8-18 as the second production of its 51st season.
“This isn’t your typical Agatha Christie play,” said director Stuart Jonap. “It’s a tangled web of mystery and murder wrapped up in a who done it with laughs and surprises galore.”
Spider’s Web centers on Clarissa, the wife of a diplomat whose vivid imagination and fondness for spinning elaborate tales suddenly collide with reality when a murder takes place in her drawing room.
With her husband due to arrive with an important politician, Clarissa desperately tries to dispose of the body before they get there, enlisting her guests to help.
Their efforts become even more complicated when Inspector Lord, a wry police detective, arrives to investigate.
As the mystery unfolds, Clarissa finds herself caught in an increasingly complicated web of deception — leaving those around her, and the audience, to determine when she is telling the truth.
The play combines the elements that made Christie one of the world’s most famous mystery writers with a comedic take on the traditional detective thriller. The story features murder, police, drug addicts, invisible ink, hidden doorways and secret drawers as its characters try to unravel what really happened.
Spider’s Web premiered in London’s West End at the Savoy Theatre on Dec. 14, 1954, and ran for 744 performances. It remains Christie’s second-longest-running play, behind The Mousetrap.
Christie wrote 66 detective novels, 150 short stories and 25 plays during her career, along with six romance novels under the pseudonym Mary Westmacott.
Stuart Jonap, a veteran of Old Courthouse Theatre, is leading a cast that features a mixture of familiar OCT performers and newcomers.
Returning performers include Jonathan M. Ewart, Sarah Ganddini, Maggie Garrido, Brian Rassler, Roger Watson and Aaron Zimmerman.
Joining them are new-comers Jake Dailey, Lou Delassandro, Michelle Hooker, Collin Hoskins, and Luke Tyrell.
The production’s design team includes Kim Baysinger on costumes, Watson on set design and Megan Delgado on lighting.
The show also coincides with the beginning of Old Courthouse Theatre’s annual fundraising campaign. The theater has set a goal of raising $35,000 this year, with the money designated for structural, electrical and other facility improvements.
Old Courthouse Theatre is celebrating its 51st season in Concord. The community theater operates out of a restored former church that is more than 100 years old and presents five main-stage productions each season, along with youth productions and other special events.
Its Black Box Theatre also hosts the Living Room Reading Series and resident company the Post Mortem Players.
Agatha Christie’s Spider’s Web runs Oct. 8-18 at Old Courthouse Theatre, 49 Spring St. NW in Concord.
Tickets, including sales tax and order fees, are $24 for adults, $22 for seniors ages 60 and older and students, and $19 for children ages 10 and younger. Groups of 10 or more can purchase tickets for $21 per person when all tickets are purchased in a single transaction.
Tickets can be purchased online or by calling 704-788-2405.
For more information, visit octconcord.com.