Review: Holmes and Watson at B Street Theatre

This new Sherlock Holmes mystery is like an episode of that old TV game show, To Tell the Truth. Three men, each well-prepared with the facts of the famous detective’s life, claim to be the super sleuth. Trouble is, plenty of others have claimed to be Holmes, who has been presumed—and may well be—dead after an incident involving him and arch nemesis Moriarty three years earlier.

Only Holmes’ supremely insightful and cognizant partner, Dr. John Watson, can identify the real Sherlock Holmes, and he’s been called all over Europe to debunk the imposters. Now, he finds himself on an island off the coast of Scotland, where the three possible imposters are held in an insane asylum.

Playwright Jeffrey Hatcher has created a plot that is as full of all the twists and turns and red herrings of one of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s finest Sherlock mysteries. Director Jerry Montoya peoples it with a top-notch cast and manipulates them—and the audience—through every trick and tease. Jason Kuykendall, Ryan Imhoff and Dave Pierini play Sherlocks One, Two and Three, respectively; Peter Story plays Dr. Watson; Greg Alexander plays asylum director Dr. Evans; and Kathryn Smith-McGlynn and Anthony Marble round out the cast as the asylum matron and orderly. Each could have had a role on the old game show I’ve Got a Secret.

For that matter, any character in this drama could have a big, important secret. And so do I. I know the ending, but I’m not telling.