Elaine Wheeler and her husband John, share a tony townhouse in New York, decorated with impressive modern art by Picasso, Barnett Newman, Mondrian. These originals make it clear, there’s a fortune at stake. They live next door to a decrepit building, ill used and falling down. One night, while struggling with insomnia, Elaine sees a corpse, seated in the window, right across from them. Understandably, she loses it. John emerges from the bedroom to calm her down. Like Susy in Wait Until Dark, she starts from a disadvantage. Years ago, Elaine was subject to a grisly, horrific incident, and now (despite medication) she triggers easily. Her affect is somewhat frantic and frail. When she tries to explain to John she has truly witnessed this ghastly evidence, he dismisses it as histrionics.
Elaine insists they call the police, and they wait it out. Living with them is Helga, the cook, and Blanche, their family friend and Elaine’s confidante. Beat cop Vanelli arrives and asks some questions. He seems distracted. Keeps asking about the paintings. Curtis Appleby, a friendly neighbor and definitely one of the intelligentsia, introduces himself. They trade notes and he reassures her she’s not hallucinating. A detective shows up, not only skeptical, but nearly shaming her for wasting his time. Blanche and John continue to insist she’s delusional. Though not in so many words.
Lucille Fletcher’s Night Watch has similarities to Gaslight. Like Paula, Elaine senses there’s something sketchy going on, but she’s told not to believe her own senses. Her trust is violated. The very things she sees (and supposedly) doesn’t see, just happen to be triggers. In one sense, she’s met with incredulity. This isn’t just caution. She’s dismissed. She’s treated like a child. Her husband John calls the police, but always under protest. Time and again, her word is called into question.
When Night Watch begins, we already know that something’s not on the up and up. That we’ll deduce by process of elimination. Playwright Lucille Fletcher layers the plot with red herrings. Well worn hazards of the genre: twists and teases and deceptions so byzantine they cease to entice, are avoided here. Fletcher is meticulous, constructing a mystery that feels authentic. Plausible. She doesn’t prolong and has a steady, light touch.
Don’t miss Richardson Theatre Center’s absorbing, intriguing, entertaining production of Night Watch.
Richardson Theatre Centre presents: Night Watch, playing October 9th-November 1st, 2026. 518 West Arapaho Road, Suite 113, Richardson, Texas, 75080. 972-699-1130. richardsontheatrecentre.com