Sherlock Holmes and the Final Problem is the 17th episode in Plan-B Theatre’s radio presentations and the first to be aired with a live theater audience in nearly a decade.
But is this Sherlock’s final episode? You’ll have to attend one of Friday’s World Premier performances or tune into KUER 90.1 to find out!
To the plot. Sherlock Holmes (voiced by KUER’s RadioWest host Doug Fabrizio) is driven to seek refuge from his longtime nemesis Dr. Moriarty (played by Jay Perry). On the run with Dr. Watson (played by Isabell Reeder) the duo travel by train from London to the Channel crossing, destined for Paris. Or so it seems. Holmes, a master of disguise and misdirection, eludes Moriarty and their destination from Paris to Brussels, then to Strasbourg and into Switzerland.
Amid the escape, Sherlock Holmes avows his fondness — then love — for Dr. Watson. Their interchanges are gentle, his affirming and hers resistant, but finally conciliatory.
From their Alpine hideaway in the Swiss Alps, Dr. Watson is called back to the hotel to treat an ailing British woman, who refuses care from a “foreign doctor.” Holmes is left alone to fend for himself against the cunning, murderous Dr. Moriarty who lurks nearby.
The live audience will see backdrops move from one destination to another, illustrating international chase. Meanwhile, for listeners gathered around the radio, clever Foley work fills in the visual gaps and brings the action to life.
The British accents of the three presenters are finely tuned and pitch-perfect. As a member of the radio generation, I can say that this live radio broadcast is true to its nostalgic form—including the pauses for station identification. It brought back memories of listening to the Lux Radio Theater around the family RCA as I sat back in my theater seat and closed my eyes, I was transported.
The World Premiere of Sherlock Holmes and the Final Problem by Matthew Ivan Bennett, adapted from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, airs before a live audience on Friday, Oct. 27, 2023, with two performances at 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. in the Jeanne Wagner Theatre. Presented by Plan-B Theatre, Jerry Rapier, Artistic Director.
- What: Plan-B Theatre and KUER 90.1 present Radio Hour: Sherlock Holmes and the Final Problem
- Where: The Jeanne Wagner Theatre, 138 W. 300 South, SLC and broadcast live on KUER 90.1
- When: Oct. 27, 2023, at 11 a.m. and 7 p.m. Note: Because the performances will be broadcast live, there will be NO late admissions to the theater.
- Tickets and information: planbtheatre.org
- Also: The program will be available to listen on-demand starting Monday, Oct. 20, 2023.
Related: PLAN-B AND SHERLOCK HOLMES RETURN TO THE AIRWAVES
