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The Mousetrap - World’s longest running play comes to Bengaluru

The stage is set for The Mousetrap in Bengaluru. The longest running play in the world has decided to make a debut in Bengaluru. Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap will be celebrating 67 years since it was first on stage.
 

Bengaluru: Spanning over 67 years, the longest running play in the world, The Mousetrap by Agatha Christie will see the light of day in Bengaluru’s St John’s auditorium.

The Mousetrap was declared the longest running play in 1958 and even went on to celebrate it’s 20,000th performance in the year 2000.

Bengalureans can now treat themselves to this play which is about a killer stalking snowbound guests at an isolated country inn called Monkswell Manor. Denise Slivey who was one of the cast members is now the artistic director.

The Mousetrap follows the original script from 1952, but Slivey added that the script was updated and placed in ‘Christie Time’. However, that didn’t work and was put back to the year that Christie had set.

It is interesting to note that the play was initially a radio script written for Queen Mary’s birthday and was broadcast on May 30, 1947 under the name ‘Three Blind Mice’.

The play itself was based on Christie’s short story and she had requested that the play not be published till it ran at the West End.

In fact, in an extract from Agatha Christie’s autobiography, the writer believed that the play would only run for about 8 months and no longer than that.

However, the play went on to become the longest running play and has even inspired two movies, one by Russian director Samson Samsonov’s 1990 adaptation Myshelovka and the other Premendra Mitra’s 1960 Bengali film Chupi Chupi Aashey.

The play has been performed in several countries from China to Singapore. In Bengaluru, six shows will be held between November 14 and 17, at ⁠St John's Auditorium, John Nagar, Koramangala.

On November 14 and 15, the play will be held at 7:30pm. On November 16 and 17 —Saturday and Sunday — there will be shows at 3 pm and 7 pm.