Book Club

Christie's Plays

Agatha Christie wrote over a dozen plays, the most famous of which is The Mousetrap - the longest running play in the world. Here you can discuss each play in detail.

Warning: These discussions may contain spoilers!

Towards Zero (play)

Moderator1 21 Sep 09 at 9:06 a.m. GMT

Including Nevile Strange and his wife Kay as guests at her house party should be quite pleasant for Lady Tressilian.  But also having Nevile's first wife Audrey there really does add something to the mix.  Kay is not at all impressed with the attention Nevile is giving to Audrey  When Lady Tressilian is found bludgeoned to death all the evidence seems to lead to Nevile.  But is this evidence rather too contrived?  Thankfully Superintendent Battle is on hand to solve this nasty murder and following the clues leads him to a very deranged mind.   

This was not one of Christie's most successful adaptations (done in conjunction with Gerald Verner) but did it deserve to close after six months?  What could she perhaps have done to make this a more memorable play?

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GKCfan 16 Oct 09 at 10:54 p.m. GMT

I think that in a dramatic adaptation of "Towards Zero," where the villain is one of the most twisted and sadistic in the Christie canon, you really need to focus on giving top-notch actors a chance to create the sinister mood.  The killer has to be given a chance to show the evil leer beneath the smile, the victim-to-be has to demonstrate her increasing mental strain, and the the "couples" in the play have to have real chemistry.  The play needs more than just the plot to work: you have to create an escalating atmosphere of doom.

I had heard that Towards Zero was a collaboration, but I don't know how or why Christie partnered with Verner.  Actually, I don't think Verner is credited as a co-writer in the American edition of Towards Zero.