THEATER REVIEW : ‘Accomplice’: Revival of Holmes’ Whodunit Gets Away With Murder

“Accomplice” is not so much a whodunit thriller as a spoof of the genre. Anybody who goes to see the revival of Rupert Holmes’ 1989 murder mystery at the Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre ought to bear this in mind.

Otherwise, its convolutions of plot are likely to seem too self-conscious by half. Even as a sendup it exploits the genre’s conventions so shamelessly that the characters themselves do not hesitate to remind us we’re watching a stagy variation on a theme of “Sleuth” and “Deathtrap.”

But far from merely being “your basic one-set, two-act, four-scene, four-character thriller,” as one member of the cast describes it, “Accomplice” goes in for long-winded explanations of assorted mayhem with elaborate backstage machinations impossible to deduce or anticipate from the given evidence.

And so, depending on your taste in thrillers, you may love or hate “Accomplice.”

Either way, for much of the first act you will have to sit still for a lot of tepid wit that’s supposed to pass for scintillating cocktail chat. Satirizing the foibles of the British upper middle-class in general, it takes aim specifically at a boring husband and his bored wife.

She: You never exercise.

He: Not true. I’ve been wrestling with my conscience for years.

As the play opens, she is plotting his murder. She makes him a whiskey and soda, doped with nicotine concentrate, while they await the arrival of guests for a weekend at their cottage just outside London.

What happens next, though, depends on wigs and false mustaches and a series of unexpected complications involving death by other means, illicit sexual affairs and subplots better left undescribed. Suffice to say, by the second act none of the relationships are what they seemed in the first. Nor are the characters.

The pace of the production is snappy enough under Robert G. Leigh’s direction, although it occasionally snags on a prop. (A leather restraint used to tie up one of the four main characters at a climactic moment has so many buckles that trying to fasten them all nearly halts the action.)

But overall, the technical values are fine, thanks to Brad Kaye’s detailed scenic design and Lyn Coulter’s ‘70s-style costumes.

Dorothy A. Gallagher brings considerable poise to her roles, anchoring the production throughout with a solid performance and a credible British accent. Steve Grodt adds versatility and needed energy in his roles.

John Ross Clark is more routine, yet has a comic touch when needed and is always steady. Beth Kellermann, playing a bimbo, fills out the cast. Well, almost. There’s a fifth player, but we can’t get into that.

* “Accomplice,” Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre, 5021 E. Anaheim St., Long Beach. Ends Nov. 27. Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. Matinees Sunday and Nov. 21 at 2 p.m. $10. (310) 494-1616. Running time: 2 hours, 20 minutes. A Long Beach Playhouse Studio Theatre production of the play by Rupert Holmes. Directed by Robert G. Leigh. With Steve Grodt, Dorothy A. Gallagher, John Ross Clark and Beth Kellermann. Scenic design: Brad Kaye. Costume design: Lyn Coulter. Lighting design: Norma Garza. Sound design: Justus Matthews. Makeup and wig design: Barbara Matthews. Stage manager: Melanie Irene Bysouth.