Reminds us of: An Agatha Christie mystery, a comedy of manners, and an R-rated sexual thriller your parents wouldn’t let you watch when you were a kid.

Flop, Fine or Fringe-tastic?: Fringe-tastic.

Few sounds are more sinister than a crackling radio broadcast announcing the death of President John F. Kennedy circa 1963. The House of Yes, adapted from a 1990 play by Wendy MacLeod, opens on that ominous note and then lives up to it. In the hands of director Strother Gaines, the 90-minute play doubles as a polished black comedy and an unsettling examination of social taboos, sexual mores, and class differences. Dazzling performances and vividly realized costumes add up to a sumptuous experience that leaves plenty to ponder, and fret about, on your way out of the theater.

The story starts innocently enough. Jackie O (Michelle Polera) and her brother Anthony (Ben Ribler) squabble while setting up a Thanksgiving dinner party as they prepare to welcome Jackie’s twin Marty and an unannounced special guest. The siblings’ mother (Claire Schoonover, a delight) pops in and out, offering wry criticism and alluding to her rollicking past. Then Marty (Jared Mason Murray) arrives with a woman in tow—his fiance Lesly (Moriah Whiteman), about whom no one in the family has been informed. Tensions mount, manners crumble, insults fly, and secrets emerge. No one is as they seem, except when they are. To say more would be to spoil the delicious, at times heartbreaking, surprises in store.

Much of what unfolds in The House of Yes strains credulity on the surface. But the performances carry both showmanship and nuance, lending empathy to characters who might not earn it otherwise. Strong technical aspects including sound and lighting design also make the plot’s whiplash-inducing turns easier to stomach.

The House of Yes is playing at the Atlas Performing Arts Center, Lab II, on July 23 at 8 p.m.

See here for more of DCist’s Capital Fringe 2016 reviews.