Setting the Stage for Suspense: Inside Cal Poly’s Clue: The Musical

To bring the classic board game to life for Cal Poly’s “Clue: The Musical” a handful of students spent hours recreating a mansion for the stage, with tall columns and an epic entryway.

“Just yesterday, we had to create these hidden door pieces for parts of the pillars that swing open at different times and parts during the show for a big dramatic reveal,” said Declan Henry, a freshman in Cal Poly’s Stagecraft class.

The Stagecraft team consists of approximately 25 students who have been constructing the set for Clue. A couple of other students come to help with minor detailing. In this class students paint, build, and detail. Professor Richard Jackson, who oversees the team, explained how they executed the designers' vision. 

“A handful of students are in runcrew so the students actually working on construction is roughly 25 or so and some of the runcrew students will come in and help with stage production so we have roughly 28-30 people working on the show.” Jackson said. 

All students involved in construction are dealt different tasks. Zoey Meraz, a freshman at Cal Poly, joined Stagecraft for the first time this quarter. 

“So far I have been helping a lot on multiple different projects,” says Meraz. “I have worked on building frames for on stage platforms and other big platforms on set that the actors will be performing on." 

She also expressed some of the challenges of being a new Stagecraft student. 

“Getting used to jumping into new projects and using new tools we haven't used before was definitely hard, because once I would get used to using one specific tool we would get thrown into another project.”

Meraz explains the importance of teamwork and the reasoning for her joining stagecraft 

“My dad has worked in construction his whole adult life, and he has taught me about the importance of working with other people and not trying to take on too much by yourself,” she said, noting that she also wanted to perform stagecraft to learn more about her father’s trade.

Clue began as a classic murder-mystery board game where players move through a mansion to uncover who committed the crime, with what weapon, and in which room. The 1985 film adaptation turned the game into a comedic whodunit with multiple endings, while Clue: The Musical brings the mystery to life on stage, allowing the audience to help solve the case. Because the story hinges on hidden secrets and surprise reveals, the set isn’t just a backdrop—it’s an interactive part of the mystery. From concealed doors to moving walls, the stage must constantly shift to keep both the characters and the audience guessing.

Beyond building sturdy platforms and stage structures, the Stagecraft team is also responsible for creating intricate moving set pieces that add to the mystery and suspense of the show. The set isn’t just a backdrop—it plays an active role in the storytelling, with hidden doors and interactive components that bring the board game to life. 

The world of Clue is built on mystery, and for “Clue: The Musical,” that intrigue extends beyond the script to the stage itself. During a visit to the scene shop, Professor Richard and a student studied blueprints, mapping out the intricate moving pieces that would bring the board game to life. Nearby, props for the show sat ready for their moment in the spotlight, while one student carefully cut a piece of wood for the set on the table saw. Another guided a router along the frame of a towering pillar, shaping the hidden doors and interactive elements that would transform the stage into a living, breathing crime scene.

Henry described how the set captures the classic Clue atmosphere. 

“I think the overall atmosphere is set in a big mansion. There’s a lot of set pieces and props that relate to that, like a pool table and some really ornate phones. The overall set itself is very ornate and reminiscent of early 20th-century architecture, which is the time when this takes place”

Tickets for Clue: The Musical are now on sale, offering audiences a chance to step into the world of intrigue. Audience members are randomly picked to join the actors on stage to solve the murder mystery and be a part of the action. 

The show runs from February 27 to March 2, and March 6 to 8 at the Spanos Theatre. With multiple endings and interactive elements, no two performances will be exactly the same, making each show a unique experience.

  props for the show are sitting on a table in the stagecraft shop.

Professor Richard and Declan Henry are going over the blueprints of the short platforms that enclose the audience members who will sit on the stage.

Declan Henry is cutting a piece of wood for his assignment on the table saw.

Zoey Meraz is routing one of the frames for the pillars that will stand to create the classic clue mansion.