The Mysterious Disappearance of Agatha Christie is a murder mystery - without a murder! Taken from the London Times reports of the case as it developed, and consistent with the facts as they were known at the time, this is a fictional account of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Dorothy L. Sayers, and their reaction and response to Agatha Christe's disappearance in July, 2026.
The play underwent extensive development at the Alley Theatre in Houston, Texas, starting at the Alley in Ucross program, then further developed in the Alley All New Festival 2020 and received a reading at the Alley Theatre, under the guidance of
Rob Melrose, Artistic Director and Dean R. Gladden, Managing Director; and finally had a week long workshop with all the wonderfull actors at the Alley, via zoom during the pandemic.
The play is scheduled to premiere in 2027, and I'll announce which theatre as soon as they release their season!
Alley at Ucross, 2019, with (L to R) Robert Melrose, Molly Beach Murphy
Claire Kiechel, Robert Askins, Arthur M. Jolly, (front) Vichet Chum
Why this play?
There have been several movies, plays, articles and books written about Agatha Christie's notorious disappearance in 1926...and somehow, I missed all of them before randomly coming across a mention of the event in a Reddit thread. That sent me down a rabbit hole, and the more I learned, the more fascinated I became.
What struck me most wasn't even Agatha's disappearance, or the 15,000 volunteers that took part in the search–it was the fact that Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Dorothy L. Sayers joined in. This complicated triangle between three of the most celebrated mystery writers ever, caught up in a real-life mystery, is one of the most amazing setups in history for a whodunnit play!
The Mysterious Disappearance of Agatha Christie is based on the London Times reports, day by day, over the eleven days. I tried my best to make sure that I added nothing that contravened the facts of the case as they were known at the time, but my play is utter fantasy, and invents motivations, subplots, and complicated character choices that are entirely fictional.
While the play is inspired by the day-by-day London Times reportage of
Agatha Christie's disappearance in 1926, this is a fictional account of the
occurrence, and is not intended to portray the actual events or the nature or
motivations of any real people. The play has not been endorsed, authorized or
licensed by the estate of Agatha Christie or by Agatha Christie Limited.
Sample Dialogue...
This one is available for production from the playwright, or can be downloaded from the New Play Exchange.
