Three actors juggle 17 roles in Lighthouse Festival’s The Hound of the Baskervilles
iPhoto caption: 'The Hound of the Baskervilles 'rehearsal photo courtesy of Lighthouse Festival.
“It’s 98 per cent comedy, two per cent mystery.”
That’s how actor Sweeney Macarthur describes Lighthouse Festival’s The Hound of the Baskervilles, a comic spin on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s classic Sherlock Holmes mystery, adapted by U.K.-based playwrights Steven Canny and John Nicholson. The original staging of this Baskervilles premiered in Leeds in 2007, and transferred to London’s West End that same year. Lighthouse’s production is directed by the company’s previous artistic director, Derek Ritschel, and begins previews June 18.
Baskervilles‘ small ensemble — comprising Macarthur, Jonathan Ellul, and Andrew Scanlon — has a herculean task: playing a sprawling cast of characters from Conan Doyle’s narrative. Together, they juggle enough roles to fill an English manor house — 17 in total. While Ellul plays Dr. John Watson, Sherlock’s oft-befuddled companion, throughout the play, Macarthur and Scanlon zig-zag between a range of parts.
“I play Sherlock,” said Scanlon in an interview which included Macarthur and Ellul. “Famously, in this particular mystery, he goes away for the middle portion of the story, because he’s operating undercover. So I play everyone else in Dartmoor, [the rural area of England where the story takes place]. I have about seven or eight characters.”
Macarthur’s multiple roles include the mystery’s first murder victim. “There’s a sequence in which I’m trying to wrestle set changes and three different characters [at once],” Macarthur shared. “The audience is seeing behind the curtain of this mad scramble.”
Scanlon added that all three actors also play themselves in the show: “There’s an element of metatheatricality.”
That additional layer turns Baskervilles into a play-within-a-play, which is “where the comedy comes through,” said Ellul. “The paradox is that [these versions of ourselves] are trying to tell a terrifying mystery story, but with a lack of budget and a lack of resources.”
“Every expense has been spared,” joked Macarthur.
Another source of laughs is in-fighting within the cast, as the fictional versions of Ellul, Macarthur, and Scanlon try to keep their show on track.
“It’s fun to play with some of the worst perceptions of what actors are capable of when things aren’t going well,” said Scanlon. “There’s ego, the question of who has the biggest part, and a lot of back and forth about who’s ruining the show.”
It takes virtuosic actors to make this sort of scripted chaos work — and that’s not even broaching the subject of costumes. Quick-changes abound on the moors. “Once the show starts, it goes like a Japanese bullet train,” said Ellul.
Macarthur agreed. “There are more costumes and props in this show than any other one I’ve done,” he said.
“[I’ll] be taking off a full tweed suit and putting on a Victorian dress,” Scanlon described. “There will be a lot of coordination that needs to go on.” He praised “the incredible stage management team… That’s where the critical work happens to make sure everything gets on our bodies.”
For Scanlon, these costume changes aren’t just exhilarating because of their speed. “I love experimenting with gender on stage,” he said. “The notion of playing a version of this actor’s version of a woman in this piece is fun to explore.”
Scanlon is no stranger to multi-character mysteries. He also played several roles in Lighthouse’s 2024 production Murder at Ackerton Manor, a send up of Agatha Christie’s mystery novels written and directed by Steven Gallagher. He noted that, despite the scripted mishaps, this adaptation of Baskervilles remains a satisfying retelling of the classic story.
“I’m sure there will be people who come who don’t know who the killer is,” he said. “They’ll actually have the experience of seeing a mystery play out.”
“The Arthur Conan Doyle purists will [also] get their money’s worth,” added Macarthur.
All three actors spoke to what a joyful experience rehearsing Baskervilles has been — and there’s no mystery as to why. “The collaboration is always on point,” said Macarthur.
Scanlon agreed. “The show is all gags and bits and that kind of thing, and contributions are coming from all places,” he said. “Derek Ritschel, our director, was saying the other day that it’s fun to be in a room where the best idea wins — whatever the funniest thing is.”
For Ellul, one of Baskervilles’ chief joys has been “the chance to work with these two,” he said, gesturing to Macarthur and Scanlon. “[The three of us have] been in the business for about the same amount of time, but it’s the first time Andrew and I have worked together; and it’s been 16 years since the last time Sweeney and I worked together.
“I think it’s because we’re often up for the same parts,” he theorized. “This show is a treat, because it requires three of us with a similar skill set, and a willingness to be wacky.”
The Hound of The Baskervilles runs June 18 to July 15 at the Lighthouse Theatre in Port Dover, and July 9 to July 20 at the Roselawn Theatre in Port Colborne. Tickets are available here.
The Lighthouse Festival is an Intermission partner. Learn more about Intermission’s partnership model here.
Nathaniel Hanula-James
Nathaniel Hanula-James is a multidisciplinary theatre artist who has worked across Canada as a dramaturg, playwright, performer, and administrator.
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