The Play That Goes Wrong

The Play That Goes Wrong is the debut hit from Mischief Theatre, and though the play is wrong, the time is right to see it. Get The Play That Goes Wrong tickets on TodayTix.

It's usually not a good sign if you're at a show and technical difficulties abound, or the actors keep forgetting their lines. But at The Play That Goes Wrong, mishaps are the source of family-friendly, gut-busting comedy for two hours. You'll especially love this show if you love physical comedy, as there are spills, spit takes, and swordfights galore. And in between those, there are enough verbal jokes and misdelivered lines to keep you roaring with laughter.

A review of the show on New York Theatre Guide reads, "If it is cliché to say that a show has non-stop laughs, then this show is cliché in the extreme. If it is pat to say that this play lives up to its title, rarely have a talented crew of actors and technicians so seamlessly joined forces to make a ridiculously wrong piece of theater feel so very right."

The Play That Goes Wrong introduces us to the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society, an amateur theatre troupe which puts on a new production each year. Their latest show, The Murder at Haversham Manor, sees the group tackle a murder mystery. But the only mystery is why they’d put on a tricky thriller in the first place. Cast members go missing, props go walkabout, and sets crumble away. The Murder at Haversham Manor isn’t so much a murder mystery anymore, but a struggle to get the curtain up. The show must go on, though, and eventually they stumble through. The Play That Goes Wrong is a delightful disaster, full of miraculous mishaps and hilarious happenings.

Though the actors aren't as fortunate, you can't go wrong seeing The Play That Goes Wrong off Broadway. Get The Play That Goes Wrong tickets on TodayTix now.

The Play That Goes Wrong has won the world over since its one-night-only premiere in London in 2012. That performance took place in a 60-seat theatre and gave way to a longer run in the summer of 2013. A year later, The Play That Goes Wrong opened in London's West End, and it went on to win the 2015 Olivier Award for Best New Comedy.

The journey of The Play That Goes Wrong in New York began in 2017, when the show opened on Broadway. Two years, 772 performances, and one Tony Award win later (for scenic design), the show closed, but the Cornley Polytechnic Drama Society found a new Off-Broadway home at New World Stages in 2019. In some ways, the smaller, underground space makes it even more believable that you're watching a haphazard amateur performance.

The show is created by Mischief Theatre, a British theatre company dedicated to theatrical send-ups. The Play That Goes Wrong was Mischief's first play, and its other plays include Magic Goes Wrong, Peter Pan Goes Wrong, and A Christmas Carol Goes Wrong, all of which have played to acclaim in England.

What to Watch For

• Mischief Theatre was created by Henry Shields, Henry Lewis, and Jonathan Sayer, a group of graduate students from the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts (LAMDA). They founded the company as an improv troupe in 2008 during their dramatic foundations class.
• Did you know that The Play That Goes Wrong has been seen in every continent, apart from Antarctica? Maybe one day the production will truly go south to the South Pole.
• The Play That Goes Wrong off Broadway is one of many productions to go to New World Stages after ending its Broadway run. Best Musical Tony winners Avenue Q and Jersey Boys did the same in 2009 and 2017, respectively.
• Contrary to its name, Mischief Theatre doesn't just do theatre. The company has a BBC TV show, The Goes Wrong Show, and a podcast, Mischief Makers. Its Peter Pan Goes Wrong was also adapted for TV in 2016.
• Their characters' performances might go wrong, but the actors certainly don't actually want that to happen! Because the show is physically demanding, The Play That Goes Wrong performers attend physical therapy regularly to keep themselves in top, healthy form.