Sorry everyone about my absence. Work and other life activities have gotten in the way of daily blogging, but I'm back now, and back with a vengeance! So read on, pass along, use as a study guide, what have you! And if you have any play suggestions for me to read, PLEASE let me know! :) Now, without further ado...I bring you Witness for the Prosecution!
Witness for the Prosecution is a play written in 1953 by Agatha Christie (yes, the Agatha Christie) and is based on her short story of the same name. Now, I happen to love Agatha Christie stories. I think she is one of the most brilliant mystery writers of all time, and even though I have read almost all of her stories, I can never figure out “whodunit” – she is just that good! Not many people though realize that she have also written several plays, non-fiction books, and romance novels (huh?). One of her most well-known plays is The Mousetrap, which is still performed in London today; it is the longest running play in the world! Witness for the Prosecution, though only running for 645 performances on Broadway, was still deemed a success by Agatha Christie play standards.
The play begins at the onset of an important and confusing murder trial. Leonard Vole comes to the office of Sir Wilfrid Robarts, a very important and famous defense attorney, because he is afraid that he will be accused of the murder of Emily French, an elderly spinster who he meets and befriends. Leonard is the prime suspect in the case because he was the last one who saw her alive and is the recipient of her entire will (of which he claims to have no knowledge of). Sir Wilfrid believes that his client is innocent and does all that he can to prove the prosecution wrong, but it becomes harder and harder for him as the evidence is revealed, especially with the testimony of Leonard’s wife Romaine. I do not want to reveal what happens in the end (and if you’ve read any Agatha Christie, you know that nothing is resolved until the very last page!), but Agatha, as always, comes up with a brilliant ending that no one sees coming.
I have never read the short story version of Witness so I did not know how it would end. Agatha Christie’s plays tend to be a little over-dramatic at times, probably to make up for the fact that she doesn’t use her famous characters Hercule Poirot or Miss Marple. And her plays often contain more romance or a romantic ending, and Witness for the Prosecution certainly has that element, in a sense. The romances are a bit contrived, and in some of her other plays, the romance begins and concludes in the span of 3 acts! This play, however, is definitely one of her best-written, and shies away from some of the ridiculous situations in her plays based off of her original novels. Perhaps this is because it was only based on a short story. I would also say that along with other famous court-room drama plays, Witness for the Prosecution is one of the best that I have read. The suspense and mystery keep the audience on their toes, and I love that we don’t find out whodunit until the last few lines. Brilliant, Agatha, as always.
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