CLEVELAND, Ohio — A group of actors and theatergoers worked their way through two rooms in an Ohio City basement Monday night, trying to find the solution to a series of brainy puzzles in order to extract a prize.
Through the course of a roughly one-hour game they had to flip a series of switches in a certain order, connect a dozen blocks in order to activate a series of fans in the correct sequence and connect pipes based on color, without overlapping differently colored pipes.
It was the first 2017 gathering of the Playhouse Square Young Professionals group, which connects Playhouse Square thespians with their younger patrons. On Monday night the group tried Perplexity Games, a Cleveland escape room with two games that involve putting a group of people in a small chamber and requiring them to solve puzzles before they can egress.
On this night they were joined by the cast of Ken Ludwig’s “Baskerville” — a Sherlock Holmes mystery based on “The Hound of the Baskervilles” by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that’s playing at the Cleveland Play House until. Feb. 12.
Much of the “Baskerville” cast lives in New York City and said they wanted to experience Cleveland before returning to the Big Apple.
Bill Molchan, the son of co-owner Diana Molchan, explained to the group that they’d be playing a mystery-themed game in which Thomas Edison had hired them to steal a sample of a competitor’s invention, something the real Edison was known to do from time to time.
Their assignment involved finding their way into the competitor’s lab and activating one of his machines to procure the sample.
Most of the group said they’ve never tried an escape room before.
“Ryan Lucas, who is part of the team at Cleveland Play House, had this brilliant idea to do a mystery-themed problem solving game,” Jacob James, who plays Dr. John Watson — Sherlock Homes partner — in “Baskerville,” said before they started the game. “And I’ve never done an escape room before, so I’m very excited to try one.”
James said he tried to develop the analytical mind of a detective in preparation for his part, paying attention to small details and trying to determine how they fit together.
“We’ll see how it helps or hinders,” he said.
To James’ credit, he was instrumental in solving the aforementioned block puzzle.
The group solved the game with around five minutes to spare. Once every puzzle was cracked, a tiny compartment opened with candy bars that James passed out to everyone.
“It was so much fun,” said “Baskerville” cast member Nisi Sturgis once they finished the game.
Sturgis said she also enjoyed interacting with theater fans, who chatted with the “Baskerville” cast and suggested places to visit during their stay in Northeast Ohio.
Theatergoers said they reveled in the chance to interact with the cast in a more intimate setting.
“Who was your favorite Watson?” Young Professionals member Jamie Spencer asked James.
“I actually love the old Basil Rathbone films,” James said, referring to a series of Sherlock Holmes movies from the 1930s and 1940s starring British actor Basil Rathbone in the title role. “Because they’re so creepy and they’re black and white and they have a historic quality to them.”
However, Nigel Bruce, who played Watson in those films, portrays the character as a fat idiot, whereas the Watson of the Sherlock Holmes novels is much more competent, James said. Martin Freeman of the modern Holmes series “Sherlock” on the BBC plays Watson closer to the original interpretation of the character, he said.
Cast member Brian Owen said his stint in “Baskerville” marked his first trip to Ohio, and so far the denizens of the Buckeye state had made a positive impression.
“Cleveland has been wonderful,” James added.
The game, he said, was an added bonus.
“After spending all that time with a Sherlock Holmes story, I found it kind of fun to step into that world,” Owen said.
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