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Peer Reviews Murder by
Quarry: The Case of the Murderous Masterpiece Entire contents are copyright © 2007, Todd Zeigler. All rights reserved. Cell phones are the only requested silence at a Whodunnit Murder Mystery. Indeed, the performances are an aerobics session for the audience compared to more standard theatre experiences. The characters appear from behind, mingling among the tables in the dining room of Masterson's, the elegant dining and reception hall adjacent to the University of Louisville campus. There is no indication of a backstage until just before Scene One. The characters circulate, converse, resist or avoid interrogation, and challenge you to flesh out the truth. Someone's been murdered. The culprit is in the room. Everyone's trying to figure out whodunit. Can you beat them to the punch before the curtain call? That's the essence of a well-crafted murder mystery: the audience is in on the excitement. Murder by Quarry is a special presentation from the company: the fourth chapter in the ongoing saga of Doctor Angus MacCrimmon, a master detective with a mystery of his own to solve. A brief recap of his story through the first three installments sets up the audience for a revelation within the self-contained story about to unfold. The story begins with a bang -- or more specifically, a prick on the MacCrimmon's "macduff" from the hatpin of Duchess Henrietta Hollingsworth, the good detective's latest client. The Duchess' husband is the recent victim of a gruesome murder. She suspects significance in a piece of art within the Duke's estate, precious to the late Harry and reviled by everyone else in the house. Doctor MacCrimmon steps up to the case and into a house of intrigue, betrayal, scandal -- suffice to say, the murder itself is hardly a shocking result from the activities within these walls. The added enjoyment for the audience are the intermissions -- which are anything but. The characters reemerge and waive all rights to makeup touchups. The audience can question at its leisure everyone involved. The most the suspects can do is answer or evade, although they're free to lie to a solitary question: "Are you the killer?" You didn't think it'd be that easy, did you? Frank Whitaker, the second actor in Whodunnit history to take up the role of the skeptical Scot, is a humorous and engaging MacCrimmon. He weaves throughout the clues with deft sleuthing and a Columbo-like casualness. Ann Waterman is herself a portrait-perfect encapsulation of the delicate and forlorn Duchess. Erica Goldsmith as reserved, seductively meek Elyse generates a tension with the Duchess that sits at a perfect simmer, never overheating.
Counterbalancing their feminine subtleties is the amusingly overblown pomposity of Niles Welch's Count Alexei Federov and WhoDunnit newcomer Alicia Davis' Rain Man-esque asylum attendee, Hetty Hollingsworth. The only character who fell flat was David DeSpain's Carlton, who appeared to be attempting to stay below MacCrimmon's radar, yet never seemed to register a blip. Faults with the show lie with the technical aspects. The use of microphones for a relatively small venue might have adversely encouraged the actors' will to project. Slight lateral head movements had a muffling effect on nearly everyone. The volume issues were particularly apparent during the music numbers, which were themselves a bit obtuse for a turn of the (20th) century period piece. Two lover's lament numbers done New Wave style impeded the show's rhythm somewhat. However, the actors ably picked the pace back up. The measure of such an interactive show is the audience's response. Thirteen sleuths solved the quite tricky caper -- not a bad showing, so near to a center of higher education. The comments and post-show nuzzling was quite positive, a welcome sign that River City theatre enthusiasts might welcome a chance to sit up and join in on the fun. That's a task WhoDunnit should be quite pleased to take the rap for. Murder by Quarry: The Case of the Murderous
Masterpiece Feb. 17 - Mar. 31, 2007 (502) 426-7100 Doors open at 6:30; show starts at 7:00. $39.95 includes dinner, show, tax and gratuity.
Posted Feb. 22, 2007 |
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