By Deanna Dement Myers
Murder for Two – An original musical with book and music by Joe Kinosian and book and lyrics by Kellen Blair. JC Clementz directs. Creative team includes Regina Garcia, Scenic Designer; Misti Bradford, Costumer Designer; Aimee Hanyzewski, Lighting Designer; and David Remedio, Sound Designer. Presented by the Merrimack Repertory Theater at 50 E Merrimack St, Lowell, MA through November 11
“Will someone kill the lights?”
The cozy stage at the Merrimack Repertory Theater is sparsely dressed to look like an old New England family home and is dominated by a red grand piano. It soon becomes clear that the piano is a defacto third actor adding to the two-person cast of the musical murder mystery, Murder for Two, the second show of the MRT’s 40th season.
From the moment Joe Kinosian, the original star and co-creator of this Off-Broadway sensation walks on stage, the action doesn’t stop. Kinosian introduces characters in rapid succession as they get into place for a surprise birthday party for Great American Novelist Arthur Whitney, who (surprise) is murdered as the party commences. Making his New England debut, Kinosian plays all six of the suspects in the murder mystery. He is quickly joined by Martin Landry as the ambitious officer dispatched to the Whitney’s home to solve this crime. Landry plays Marcus Moscowicz, who with his unseen partner, Lou, attempt to unravel exactly which of the zany suspects, all who have a motive, actually did the deed.
As it turns out, Arthur Whitney had complicated relationships with a prima ballerina, his widow, niece, psychiatrist, the nosy neighbors, and even the detective. Kinosian and Landry skillfully play 13 roles in homage to everything from Agatha Christie to “Murder She Wrote” to the board game Clue. Instead of being a confusing jumble of who’s who in this whodunit, the accomplished duo define mannerisms for each character, and the audience is treated to Marx Brothers-style physical comedy and catchy, original show tunes. The most hilarious moments come when some of the established character rules are broken, with a wink through the fourth wall to the audience that only serves to draw us further in to fun.
The two energetic actors share the stage and the piano with great skill, and without missing a beat, even though Kinosian must be each of the suspects, sometimes all of them and a 12 man boys choir, in the space of a few breaths. The pratfalls and pirouettes are handled with precision as each suspect in turn is questioned and their hidden truths revealed. What we see on stage is a masterful and accomplished well-timed effort by the actors, director, sound, and lighting professionals. Indeed, at the end of the 90 minute production, the audience was on its feet and calling for the encore, which was happily provided.
The plot is classic murder mystery fare, with the expected incriminations, red herrings, and plot twists. With Kinosian playing all the suspects and Landry as the one that must solve the crime, the duo also must accompany themselves and each other on the piano with no breaks in the action. At times, the actors over-sing each other, making the lyrics hard to catch, though the plot and action do not suffer. If the characters were played by separate actors, the overall effect would be of a tried and true and trite story. With the economy of actors in this production, their talent is allowed to expand to carry this demanding show to a greater effect, engaging the audience to invest in seeing the mystery is solved.
For tickets to Murder for Two, October 17 – November 11, 2018, or subscriptions, visit www.mrt.org or contact the MRT Box Office at 978-654-4678.
