Agatha Chrisitie’s novel was first published in 1939 as Ten Little Niggers; the title was changed to And Then There Were None in 1940, though some editions named it Ten Little Indians.
Agatha Christie’s classic murder mystery, And Then There Were None, makes an impressive theatre debut in Karachi.
The opening night of Drama Queen Productions’ And Then There Were None not only impressed die hard Agatha Christie fans, in the house to enjoy an adaptation of her classic novel, but it also served the additional purpose of bringing fresh talent to the theatre in Karachi. Directed by Arman Tejani and Ahmed Majeed Agloria, the play was held at The Second Floor (T2F) on Friday night, in front of a packed house that applauded the young actors for aptly portraying characters that had survived the test of time through decades of adaptations and having been presented with a twist each time.
Agatha Chrisitie’s novel was first published in 1939 as Ten Little Niggers; the title was changed to And Then There Were None in 1940, though some editions named it Ten Little Indians. The writer adapted it for stage in 1943 and since then, this is regarded as one of her most widely adapted works, for TV, film and stage.
The story (as we all know too well) revolves around ten strangers who are lured to a mansion on a mysterious island by an ‘unknown’ host. They assemble over dinner, where a record starts to play, accusing each one of them of guarding a guilty secret. That evening, one character named Tony Marston is found murdered by a deadly dose of cyanide. The tension escalates as the survivors realise the killer is not only amongst them but is preparing to strike again.
“One little soldier boy left all alone; he went and hanged himself and then there were none.” - Agatha Christie, And Then There Were None
Co-director of the production, Ahmed Majeed Agloria impressed the most as Captain Philip Lombard whereas Ammar Sohail Javed (Anthony James Marston), Mohammad Ali Hashmi (Thomas Rogers), Komal Ahmed (Vera Elizabeth Claythorne), Momina Qadri (Dr. Armstrong) and Naveed Kamal (Justice Lawrence John Wargrave) all held their own in reincarnating what we can now call iconic characters.
And Then There Were None is open for public from August 10, 2019, according to Sarah Saifi, producer of the play and CEO Drama Queen Productions, who informed that it would run through on various dates till the September 1. – By O.A
