Bangkok Community Theatre's last production of the year promises to kill us with its deadly comic timing

In American playwright    Ira Levin's masterpiece "Deathtrap", Sidney, a thriller writer, is running out of ideas. When his protege Clifford submits a far better script, he jokes with his wife Myra that he should kill Clifford and steal the plot. In his Connecticut living room, he actually does that, but Clifford returns for revenge as a ghost and... well, let's not spoil it here. All you need to know is that the plot twists on, piling up more fun for the audience.

The play debuted in 1978 and became the longest-running comedy-thriller on Broadway, but film buffs will remember the 1982 movie adaptation starring Michael Caine and Christopher Reeve.

Real scary

"Building suspense means convincing the audience the situation is real," says director Raymond Possick, who's making his directorial debut with this Bangkok Community Theatre production. "The focus of the show is to capture the nuances of human nature to bring the characters to life. By doing so, we hope to frighten the audience at just the right time and leave them wondering just who done it."

Possick says that one secret behind the success of this genre is "actors with good medical insurance!"

Fully armed

"You can expect to see guns, knives, swords, crossbows, axes and even a mace on stage. During the rehearsal, you never know which actor may get clobbered."

"Seriously, timing is everything in a comic mystery. When you have an audience on the edge of their seats, too long a pause and you bore them, too short a pause and you don't build up enough tension."

For the complete interview, visit http://blog.nationmultimedia.com/danceandtheatre.