Fernando Buzhar Segall’s Hilarious Mystery Parody Soars at the Player’s Theater.

The World’s Most Boring Murder is anything but, in the hands of the supremely talented cast and director assembled to send up Agatha Christie and other icons of the classic genre. 

Audience members are likely to step over a cardboard “body” as they take their seats, and then get to take in the setting; a noirish detective’s office. The murder is purportedly the first real crime over perpetrated in the quiet small town that is the play’s setting, and the response to this is comically inept.

Sheridan Stevens arrives as the whiskey-slugging, trenchcoated Inspector Wagner, trying to solve the “meh” murder mystery while nearly every other character gets in his way at every turn. Wagner is clearly in over his head, and his befuddlement and growing aggravation are hilarious. 

Krishna Doodnauth grounds the show as the green, earnest Recruit trying to keep up with Wagner, and Rebecca Ho is fierce as the tough, hyper-reliable (or so it seems) Officer Scott.

Two actors play several roles, zipping back-and-forth among them in a rollercoaster of hilarity. Ashley Everhart is a powerhouse of physicality and comic timing, taking it up to 11 in all the characters she portrays. These include an annoying, intrusive and loud jogger, and a musically inclined grave digger. Catherine Waller seems like a completely different person in every role she plays, such as the obnoxious mayor; her turn as a stooped, wise woman of 80-plus is astonishingly believable. 

Segall has skillfully woven a piece that, despite the dark comedy, is a joyful, fun, even comforting throwback to the slapstick screwball comedies of the past. The jokes fly fast and furious, making for a most enjoyable experience that is a respite from the world’s ills and worries. 

The World’s Most Boring Murder is directed with style by Patrick Swailes Caldwell, doing triple duty as Costumer and Sound Designer; Scenic and Prop Design are by Vincent Gunn, with Lighting by Asa Lipton. It is Executive Produced by Jonathan Hogue (Illinoise) and Zhiwei Ma. It runs at The Players Theatre through July 28, 2024.