MURDER FOR TWO

Murder for Two Slays as a Two-for-One: Half Murder Mystery, Half Comedy

At: The Swift Creek Mill Theatre, 17401 U.S. Route 1, S. Chesterfield, VA 23834

Performances: January 29 – February 26, 2022

Ticket Prices: $49. $44 for seniors, students, military, and first responders.

Info: (804) 748-5203 or https://www.swiftcreekmill.com

The two actors who play ALL the characters in MURDER FOR TWO come onstage wearing birthday party hats, and immediately begin a series of zany and wordless shenanigans. Their wacky introduction requires them to dress the stage with pedestals, vases filled with flowers, magician’s trick bouquets, and comic sound effects. The stage itself, designed by Tom Width, features stall Greek columns, crazily angled doors, and portraits over the fireplace that have as many as seven sides and angles. A baby grand dominates the center of the stage and could very well be given credit as a third character. As the play progresses it becomes clear that this musical comedy murder mystery, written by Joe Kinosian and Kellen Blair is, as Director Tom Width describes it in his program notes, “quirky in the best possible ways.”

Mark Schenfisch plays Marcus Moscowicz, an ambitious police officer with all-consuming dreams of becoming a detective. Marcus initially appears as to be insufferably arrogant and narcissistic, but Schenfisch gradually digs down and mines the underlying integrity that drives his character.

Most remarkable, however, is Emily Berg-Poff Dandridge who plays ALL the other characters – with one notable exception I will not reveal here because I don’t want to spoil it for those of you who have not yet seen MURDER FOR TWO. The mystery revolves around who killed the prolific author Arthur Whitney who was unceremoniously murdered as he arrived for his own surprise birthday party as the remote mansion where he lives – or lived – with his wife. It is worth noting that Whitney was not well liked. All who gathered to celebrate his birthday had appeared as a character in one of his books, making them all plausible suspects.

Dandridge play the roles of the newly widowed Dahlia Whitney, the Whitney’s feisty and constantly bickering neighbors, Murray and Barb Flandon, Whitney’s talkative and over-achieving niece Stef, a well-known ballerina names Barrett Lewis who has a vaguely Russian accent that does not match her name, Dr. Griff – a local psychiatrist who conveniently ignores the ethics of doctor-patient confidentiality – and, last but not least, Timmy, Yonkers, and Skid, the only remaining members of a twelve-member boys’ choir who were invited to provide entertainment for the birthday party.

As required by the script, Dandridge swiftly transitions between these nine characters using a pair of large round eyeglasses and a red baseball cap as the only notable props. The majority of the characterizations are accomplished through shifting the actor’s center of gravity, changing the posture, and adjusting the voice, accent, and phrasing – often in mid-sentence. The result is that Dandridge often interrupts herself and does it so well we almost forget that there is a single actor creating multiple characters. Thank you, Emily Dandridge, for an outstanding performance.

As far as mysteries go, the authors have written in enough details, anecdotes, and red herrings to keep things interesting. The biggest of these is Dahlia Whitney’s increasingly colorful, complex, and loud musical confessions.

And then there’s the piano. MURDER FOR TWO is a musical, but not the breaking-into-song or catchy-show-tunes type of musical. Instead of the usual offstage band, both actors play the piano, using it like anther character’s voice or as a substitute for their own. Sometimes they do sing, but most often the piano seems to be another voice rather than an instrument to accompany the human voices.  Speaking of voices there is one character who is NOT voiced by Dandridge who is represented by a sound effect reminiscent of the muted trombone voice of the invisible adults on Peanuts animated shows.

MURDER FOR TWO is filled with a steady stream of surprises. The director makes sure the pace rarely lags. This show might even trigger sensory overload for some viewers. The story is complex enough to hold the audience’s attention for ninety minutes with no intermission and the lighting is as wacky as the plot. I especially liked the effect of the arriving automobiles, and there are plenty of other special effects that surprise, stun, and amaze. The physical set screams comedy, and the writers and actors have successfully met the challenge of this hybrid genre of theatre without detriment to either the comedy or the mystery elements. The rapid transitions and complexity sometimes make it a challenge for the audience as well, and there are occasional asides or moments when the audience is directly addressed – giving us a moment to catch up. MURDER FOR TWO is “extra” and that’s one of the best things about it.

MURDER FOR TWO

Book and Music by Joe Kinosian

Book and lyrics by Kellen Blair

Cast:

Mark Schenfisch as Marcus Moscowicz

Emily Berg-Poff Dandridge as The Suspects

Direction and Design Team:

Directed by Tom Width

Musical Direction by Mark Schenfisch

Costume Design by Maura Lynch Cravey

Lighting Design by Joe Doran

Scenic Design by Tom Width

Technical Direction by Liz Allmon

Run Time:

90 minutes, no intermission

Tickets:

$49

$44 for seniors, students, military, and first responders.

Photos: Robyn O’Neill