I have seen The Mousetrap and The Real Inspector Hound and they are both fabulous mysteries. They are really good. Also, i would suggest that you read The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940, it is a great play. It is funny and a great mystery. It is a take off of The Mousetrap and Clue.

i've read agatha christie's mousetrap and other plays and loved them all. i've always really wanted to see the mousetrap, but i haven't yet. one suspenseful play i saw and really enjoyed was the woman in black by susan hill. it's not really a mystery - more like a ghost story - but it's very scary and dark. i am a big theater buff and always enjoy hearing about interesting plays.

This is more of a ghost story than a mystery, but if you are in London check out: The Woman in Black. It is absolutely amazing. Only 2 actors and a minimum of props and yet, it is a fabulous tale.

I recently reviewed a production of a play called "Second Time Around." It's a quirky little mystery about a mystery novelist who has been murdered, and he convinces St. Peter to let him return to earth and relive his last 24 hours, so he can solve his own murder. The play does not quite live up to the promise of its plot, but a nea idea.

I recently saw a play called Whodunnit, which sent up Mousetrap and the like. Very cleverly written, and quite funny too with a shock ending (like all of them). I think it was written by Patrick Hamilton.

Also, The Mystery of Edwin Drood is a musical mystery based on Charles Dicken's unfinished mystery novel. The audience vote for who they want the killer to be. The music is excellent, get the soundtrack if you can.

Actually, David, "Whodunnit" was written by Anthony Shaffer (and was originally titled "The Case of the Oily Levantine"). It certainly does have its moments, particularly in the first act. And it is one of the few mystery plays I know of in which the solution is revealed during the curtai

Have any of you seen/read "Something's Afoot"? It's a musical comedy farce of Agatha Christie's Ten Little Indians. It's very funny. But of course I'm biased because I was cast as Lady Grace (the Grand Dame type character) in my community colege's production.

I have been most interested in finding information on two plays, both done in New York City in the late 1980s, early 1990s.

The first was called SHERLOCK HOLMES AND THE HANDS OF OTHELLO, and was done at the WESTBETH THEATRE. The second was a musical done off Broadway called THE JACK THE RIPPER REVUE. Both were superb. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

The best live murder mystery I ever saw was what seemed to be a one man show by Detective Eric Sharp. There were 400 people in the crowd but it still felt like an intimate setting. The guy has a knack for making you really believe you are in the middle of a mystery novel. This was an audience participation show and I tried to solve it but I was way off. When Detective Sharp did the final scene, it was like straight out of Columbo. Just the BEST!

Stephen Sondheim's secret passion is puzzles and locked room mysteries. So he wrote one, GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER, and it's been a favorite of mine since I saw it on Broadway. Not often performed because of its explosive ending. I've just read it's being done in La Plata, MD (southern Maryland, 30 miles from Baltimore or Washington) . May 2nd thru 18th, 2003. The shows there often sell out. Here is the reservations number: 301 932-6819.