{"id":245968,"date":"2013-03-29T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2013-03-29T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sdnews.com\/a-fine-line-of-extraordinary-silliness\/"},"modified":"2013-03-29T00:00:00","modified_gmt":"2013-03-29T07:00:00","slug":"a-fine-line-of-extraordinary-silliness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/a-fine-line-of-extraordinary-silliness\/","title":{"rendered":"A fine line of extraordinary silliness"},"content":{"rendered":"

Premiere musical is timeless & precise, led by virtuosic Jefferson Mays<\/p>\n

Por Charlene Baldridge | Cr\u00edtico de Teatro SDUN<\/p>\n

How frequently does a D\u2019Ysquith die in \u201cA Gentleman\u2019s Guide to Murder\u201d? The answer is eight times, through a dizzying array of means \u2013 one more than once \u2013 and all hilariously so; especially when all the aristocratic D\u2019Ysquiths, male and female, are played by virtuosic, Tony Award-winning actor Jefferson Mays.<\/p>\n

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(l to r) Ken Barnett and Lisa O’Hare (Photo by Henry DiRocco)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Recipient of an MFA from UC San Diego, Mays was last seen locally as Charlotte von Mahlsdorf in a pre-Broadway workshop and the post-Broadway production of Doug Wright\u2019s Tony- and Pulitzer Prize-winning \u201cI Am My Own Wife\u201d at the La Jolla Playhouse.<\/p>\n

Having held forth as all the characters in \u201cI Am My Own Wife,\u201d Mays is supremely suited to portray the D\u2019Ysquiths one and all in the new Robert L. Freedman and Steven Lutvak musical titled \u201cA Gentleman\u2019s Guide to Love and Murder,\u201d which is a co-world premiere production with Hartford Stage, where it debuted earlier. Based on \u201cIsrael Rank,\u201d a novel by Roy Horniman, it continues through April 14 at The Old Globe Theatre.<\/p>\n

If the plot sounds familiar, a 1949 film titled \u201cKind Hearts and Coronets\u201d was also based on the same story, which concerns Monty Navarro (played by wondrous baritone Ken Barnett), whose disowned, disinherited late mother was a D\u2019Ysquith. When he determines there are only nine D\u2019Ysquiths between him and Highhurst Castle, Monty sets out, poison in pocket, to murder them all. Barnett\u2019s challenge is to maintain the audience\u2019s sympathy, even though he is a serial killer who manages to make all his murders look like accidents.<\/p>\n

As Monty\u2019s love interests, Lisa O\u2019Hare plays the empty-headed, self-centered Sibella who spurns Monty because he has no money, and Chilinia Kennedy portrays Phoebe D\u2019Ysquith, the attractive and forthright sister of one of Monty\u2019s victims, Henry, who dies most hilariously. The production benefits from a sparkling well-heard ensemble of five and an orchestra of 12 conducted by Music Director Mike Ruckles, who also plays piano. Jonathan Tunick is orchestrator. Peggy Hickey is the choreographer.<\/p>\n

Former Globe co-Artistic Director Darko Tresnjak, now artistic director of Hartford Stage, directs the lavish and complicated piece, which may become his Broadway debut. He fluidly stages the work on an ingenious, attractive set designed by Alexander Dodge, who calls upon Aaron Rhyne for projection design.<\/p>\n

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(l to r) Heather Ayers, Ken Barnett and Jefferson Mays (Photo by Henry DiRocco)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The set consists of a raised music hall stage with red velvet curtains and a detailed proscenium that is a show in itself upon closer inspection. This stage within a stage allows for quick changes behind the curtain while other scenes of meet-and-greet are played on the forestage and off to the sides. Longtime Tresnjak collaborator Linda Cho creates absolutely delicious turn-of-the-century gowns for O\u2019Hare and Kennedy, who could not be thinner or more attractive in Charles LaPointe\u2019s wig designs. Neither is chirpy except as required.<\/p>\n

Outstanding among the musical numbers are Sibella\u2019s \u201cI Don\u2019t Know What I\u2019d Do,\u201d which truly establishes character; Lord Adalbert D\u2019Ysquith\u2019s \u201cI Don\u2019t Understand the Poor;\u201d \u201cBetter With a Man,\u201d performed by Henry and Monty; and Monty\u2019s \u201cSibella.\u201d Freedman and Lutvak\u2019s lyrics are exceptionally clever, and Lutvak\u2019s music amusingly borrows from Gilbert, Sullivan and Sondheim.<\/p>\n

The most outrageous costume belongs to Bartholomew D\u2019Ysquith, the bodybuilder who dies gruesomely \u2013 I\u2019ll spare you the details \u2013 in a weight-lifting accident.<\/p>\n

To make a murderer and his murders acceptable one must tread an exceptionally fine line of detailed silliness. Here the treading is precise, timeless and extraordinary. The opening night audience was beside itself with joy.<\/p>\n

\u201cA Gentleman\u2019s Guide to Love and Murder\u201d
\nWHERE: The Old Globe Theatre, 1363 Old Globe Way (Balboa Park)
\nWHEN: Thurs. \u2013 Sat. at 8 p.m.; Sun., Tues. and Wed. at 7 p.m.; and Sat. and Sun. at 2 p.m. through April 14.
\nINFO: 619-234-5623
\nWEB: theoldglobe.org<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Premiere musical is timeless & precise, led by virtuosic Jefferson Mays By Charlene Baldridge | SDUN Theater Critic How frequently does a D\u2019Ysquith die in \u201cA Gentleman\u2019s Guide to Murder\u201d? The answer is eight times, through a dizzying array of means \u2013 one more than once \u2013 and all hilariously so; especially when all the […]<\/p>","protected":false},"author":726,"featured_media":245969,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"11555","_seopress_titles_title":"A fine line of extraordinary silliness","_seopress_titles_desc":"","_seopress_robots_index":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[11549,11547,11551,11555],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-245968","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-entertainment","category-features","category-news","category-uptown-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/245968","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/726"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=245968"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/245968\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/245969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=245968"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=245968"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.sdnews.com\/es\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=245968"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}