Katie (Chelsea Bearce) , Loveday (Lauren Dunagan), Valera (Jan Zvaifler )
Patricia Milton’s complex third mystery comedy, “Accused!,” delights with suspense and cunning, spotlighting the strength of female camaraderie. Through the Victorian Ladies Detective Collective, Milton incisively intertwines present-day issues like misogyny, class elitism, religious fanaticism, and a pandemic.
Set in Berkeley’s Julia Morgan library, this 50-seat cozy theatre boasts a Victorian style, including a broad fireplace and mantle, and antique armoire. Director Kimberly Ridgeway cultivates the realism of the collective’s camaraderie, from family-like arguments to accusations to loving quips. The creative placement of movement around the small space ensures that the show is equally viewable from every direction.
Immediate standouts include the flawless accents and dialects (dialect coach Alan Coyle), spot-on Victorian garb (costume designer Tammy Berlin), and mood-enhancing lighting (lighting designer Stephanie Anne Johnson). An added touch includes a stained-glass effect with church-like reflections on the ceiling.
Insurgent Loveday Fortescue (fiery Lauren Dunagan) and scone-making Valeria Hunter (fickle Jan Zvaifler), run the Hunter boarding house for “ladies.” Outspoken Katie Smalls (powerful Chelsea Bearce), a street-smart, quick-witted boarder, completes the collective. An excitable Miss Tinglepenny (versatile Sindu Singh) barges into the detective agency, frantically claiming that her good friend has been murdered and she will be next.
Officer Perkins (Sindu Singh)
The mystery is off and running. Katie is immediately accused by an elite government agency targeting anarchists, the “Special Services.” Singh plays the dogged one-eyed Inspector Perkins, delivering the perfect attitude and parlance. Katie bought business cards from the “Freedom Print Book Shop,” co-managed by Miss Tinglepenny and known for printing anarchist pamphlets.
Someone dynamites the shop.
Consummate character actor Alan Coyne expertly portrays the amusing three male suspects: sanctimonious Deacon Manley, domineering Lord Albert, and hysterically funny, exaggerated Frenchman M. Blancmange. Comedic Dunagan’s Loveday speaks to Blancmange in English with a very exaggerated French accent to indicate she is speaking in French. Very funny.
Loveday (Lauren Dunagan), Frenchman Henri Blancmange (Alan Coyne).
First, they find three clues in a box: a small Bible, a pocket watch, and a note that says, “something is missing.” The audience engages with these clues, which lead to a clever reveal. Furthermore, they uncover a second radical plot involving the Special Services’ goal to keep the proletariat controlled by fear.
The plot turns a bit surreal with red herrings and unanswered questions, but curiosities peak.
The Victorian Ladies Detective Collective harbors a healthy dislike for men. As Loveday states, “If women knew men’s true nature, they would never marry.” The collective stays strong to help Katie, and solves the case. The play portrays the men as selfish and demeaning, always wanting something from the ladies.
Patricia Milton artfully places most of the characters under suspicion. This fast-paced caper sweeps us into its ebb and flow, keeping us off balance and wondering.
Who blew up the shop? What is the “missing message?” Does Valeria vote to admit Lord Albert into the elite Horticulture Club?
Come, enjoy, and meet the accused.
“Accused!” written by Patricia Milton, directed by Kimberly Ridgeway, Sound Designer, Gregory Scharpen, wig designer, Michael Berg at Central Works, www.central works.org, Berkeley, California, to August 11, 2024
Cast: Alan Coyne, Chelsea Bearce, Lauren Dunagan, Sindu Singh, and Jan Zvaifler
PHOTOS by Jim Norrena and Robbie Sweeny