Whodunit? All of us, probably - mentally frisking Colonel Mustard in Cluedo's library, armchair opining on TV crime, or second-guessing judges and juries as they weigh the scales of probability in real-life murder cases.
Sleuthing is what we're talking about, pitting fantasy against logic in a suspense story, twisting the elements like Rubik's cubes until the colours of truth fall into place. British playwright Anthony Shaffer used this formula to create Sleuth, his 1970 gem of intrigue that has been successfully adapted for the big screen twice (1972 and 2007), with stellar names such as Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine and Jude Law - a feat for a tale with just four characters and a fixed set.
Next month, local company Sweet and Sour Productions will stage the play at the Hong Kong Arts Centre, with Candice Moore in the director's seat. The stage actress says she chose the play for several reasons. 'Shaffer's writing is intelligent and engaging so it's a pleasure to work with the text. Also, the play has not been produced in Hong Kong before and I like to put on plays Hong Kong audiences have not seen here before,' she says.
British actor Andrew Swift plays Milo Tindle, a young hairdresser having an affair with the wife of Andrew Wyke (Barry O'Rorke), an older writer who wreaks revenge by embroiling Tindle in an insurance scam. Murder ensues; the police pursues.
Swift, 31, arrived in Hong Kong from London last year as a drama instructor; this will be his first time in the part. He saw a production in London's West End a few years ago and felt an immediate connection. As soon as he heard it was on the cards for Hong Kong, he was on the phone to Moore.
'I was desperate to audition. The opportunity to do a play like this comes round very rarely, if at all,' he says.