Stage actors have nightmares of something going wrong during a live performance. A prop breaking, a piece of scenery falling over, tripping and falling off the stage into the orchestra pit – the very idea is mortifying. That’s why The Play That Goes Wrong, a stage play about the unluckiest troupe of actors trying to put on a play and failing miserably in dozens of hilarious ways, has become such an incredible hit.

What Could Possibly Go Wrong?

A decidedly meta stage play, The Play That Goes Wrong centers on an acting troupe trying to put on a murder mystery-style dinner theater play. Yet despite the best efforts of the cast and crew, the absolute worst happens over and over again, much to their chagrin and the delight of audiences over the world. In fact, The Play That Goes Wrong has been so successful that it’s earned multiple awards.

How many awards are we talking about? When it debuted in England, it won the WhatsOnStage Award and the Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Comedy in 2014 and 2015, respectively. Then, in 2017, when it came to Broadway, it won both the Tony and the Drama Desk Award for best set design and was nominated for Best Play by the Drama League Awards.

Success at Failing

The runaway success of a play all about failure has led to the production going on tour all over the world. Translations and adaptations have spread across the globe, with licensed productions in 30 different countries across Europe, Asia, and South America.

This is good news, no matter how you slice it, as folks living close to New York City can easily take in a show at the off-Broadway New World Stages in Hell’s Kitchen or find a date for the US tour to come to their hometown.