Murder Among Friends
Garbeau's Dinner Theatre, Sacramento CA 1997
|
Directed by Patrick Spike
Set design - John Drew Light design - Jon Sivell Sound design - Patrick Spike |
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What the Critics Said
"As directed by Patrick Spike... Murder Among Friends plays out like a cross between the play Deathtrap and the movie Soapdish."
- Jim Carnes, Sacramento Bee
Concept Statement, Murder Among Friends
Introduction
I was hired by Garbeau’s Dinner Theatre to direct Murder Among Friends without reading the script. I had just finished my previous project, an Agatha Christie, so I was already in the murder mystery mode. I discovered upon reading it, however, that this was actually a comedy with the twists of a mystery. With a very fast pace and manic quality and style, we began work.
Concept & Goals (as distributed at the first production meeting)
Vision Statement
This production will explore a relationship triangle gone wrong. One person’s deception of another compounds the deception of the third - on all three sides. Trust no-one.
Journey
We follow Angela as she plots, with her lover, Jessup, the murder of her estranged and conceited husband. What happens to the already tricky plan, however, is a series of twists whereby we discover that the lover and husband are plotting against Angela. Further surprises build the chaos of ‘who’s with/against whom’ until the climax occurs in the husband’s shooting of Jessup and Angela. Only when they both rise (blanks in the gun), do we discover the truth, and that the husband will suffer for his crimes.
Audience Journey: The members of the audience will begin with the antics of two would-be murderers trying to plan the deed. However, as plot twists layer on top of one another the antics will escalate toward the climax. The audience will get nearly lost in the twists and turns, a combination of hysterical comedy and mystery intrigue, until the lid is blown off at the end, releasing the pressure of the situation.
Style
Overall quality: This production should appear as a "dramatic facade." Outwardly chic and decadent, but underneath we know it's cheaply constructed.
Stage world: This is a contemporary world where unrest and a lack of trust is innate, and the shattered breakup of a marriage is expected - merely a matter of time.
Cast: Palmer Forrester - Cocky, witty, still handsome, a faded Broadway ‘light’. Angela Forrester - His wife, somewhat hysterical, constantly deluding herself that she is in control of the situation, sometimes manic. Ted Cotton - Palmer’s Agent, younger, pretty-boy, better looking than smart. Marshall Saidenberg - A Producer, businessman, jaded. Gert Saidenberg - His wife, brassy, crass, a drinker with a sense of style. Larry/Steven Jessup - fake Puerto Rican/then serious and intense Actor.
Concept Metaphor
A group of trendy, slightly over-dressed ballroom dancers attempting to dance a spirited cha-cha* within a compressed room made of false walls outside of which we can see the scant structural supports.
*Cha-cha - a fast, rhythmic ballroom dance of Latin-American origin with a basic pattern of three steps and a shuffled side-step.
Script
Samuel French script for Murder Among Friends with no additions or deletions.
Challenges and Approach
This is a very tricky style to master. The comedy is very broad and silly yet the characters must remain real within their wacky world. Not knowing the actors of the Sacramento area I knew that I might very well have to teach them how to perform the style.
Due to the shorter rehearsal time of four weeks I had to pre-block the entire production which would allow for less collaboration and exploration with the actors in rehearsals. I would have to rely on their abilities to flesh out their characters within the prescribed staging.
Lastly, the theater has a rather unfortunate post in the middle of the stage and therefore its sets are usually very wide but shallow. This forces the stage action into a rather flat pattern. My challenge in the staging therefore was to create movement patterns that provided as much depth as possible. I worked carefully with the set designer to make a stage configuration that emphasized and capitalized on the available depth.
Outcome
We had a leading actress who, though she worked very hard to master the quirky comedic style of this play, never completely succeeded. Fortunately, she would shine when onstage with more solid actors. Unfortunately, she spent the first 20 minutes of the play onstage with only a single very inexperienced actor. The scene was very expository. They both worked very hard, but the scene never completely worked. Luckily when other actors came onstage the energy picked up and the production launched forward. Financially, the production was a success having the highest sales of the theatre’s season. Critics raved about the show and audiences enjoyed it.
"As directed by Patrick Spike... Murder Among Friends plays out like a cross between the play Deathtrap and the movie Soapdish."
- Jim Carnes, Sacramento Bee
Concept Statement, Murder Among Friends
Introduction
I was hired by Garbeau’s Dinner Theatre to direct Murder Among Friends without reading the script. I had just finished my previous project, an Agatha Christie, so I was already in the murder mystery mode. I discovered upon reading it, however, that this was actually a comedy with the twists of a mystery. With a very fast pace and manic quality and style, we began work.
Concept & Goals (as distributed at the first production meeting)
Vision Statement
This production will explore a relationship triangle gone wrong. One person’s deception of another compounds the deception of the third - on all three sides. Trust no-one.
Journey
We follow Angela as she plots, with her lover, Jessup, the murder of her estranged and conceited husband. What happens to the already tricky plan, however, is a series of twists whereby we discover that the lover and husband are plotting against Angela. Further surprises build the chaos of ‘who’s with/against whom’ until the climax occurs in the husband’s shooting of Jessup and Angela. Only when they both rise (blanks in the gun), do we discover the truth, and that the husband will suffer for his crimes.
Audience Journey: The members of the audience will begin with the antics of two would-be murderers trying to plan the deed. However, as plot twists layer on top of one another the antics will escalate toward the climax. The audience will get nearly lost in the twists and turns, a combination of hysterical comedy and mystery intrigue, until the lid is blown off at the end, releasing the pressure of the situation.
Style
Overall quality: This production should appear as a "dramatic facade." Outwardly chic and decadent, but underneath we know it's cheaply constructed.
Stage world: This is a contemporary world where unrest and a lack of trust is innate, and the shattered breakup of a marriage is expected - merely a matter of time.
Cast: Palmer Forrester - Cocky, witty, still handsome, a faded Broadway ‘light’. Angela Forrester - His wife, somewhat hysterical, constantly deluding herself that she is in control of the situation, sometimes manic. Ted Cotton - Palmer’s Agent, younger, pretty-boy, better looking than smart. Marshall Saidenberg - A Producer, businessman, jaded. Gert Saidenberg - His wife, brassy, crass, a drinker with a sense of style. Larry/Steven Jessup - fake Puerto Rican/then serious and intense Actor.
Concept Metaphor
A group of trendy, slightly over-dressed ballroom dancers attempting to dance a spirited cha-cha* within a compressed room made of false walls outside of which we can see the scant structural supports.
*Cha-cha - a fast, rhythmic ballroom dance of Latin-American origin with a basic pattern of three steps and a shuffled side-step.
Script
Samuel French script for Murder Among Friends with no additions or deletions.
Challenges and Approach
This is a very tricky style to master. The comedy is very broad and silly yet the characters must remain real within their wacky world. Not knowing the actors of the Sacramento area I knew that I might very well have to teach them how to perform the style.
Due to the shorter rehearsal time of four weeks I had to pre-block the entire production which would allow for less collaboration and exploration with the actors in rehearsals. I would have to rely on their abilities to flesh out their characters within the prescribed staging.
Lastly, the theater has a rather unfortunate post in the middle of the stage and therefore its sets are usually very wide but shallow. This forces the stage action into a rather flat pattern. My challenge in the staging therefore was to create movement patterns that provided as much depth as possible. I worked carefully with the set designer to make a stage configuration that emphasized and capitalized on the available depth.
Outcome
We had a leading actress who, though she worked very hard to master the quirky comedic style of this play, never completely succeeded. Fortunately, she would shine when onstage with more solid actors. Unfortunately, she spent the first 20 minutes of the play onstage with only a single very inexperienced actor. The scene was very expository. They both worked very hard, but the scene never completely worked. Luckily when other actors came onstage the energy picked up and the production launched forward. Financially, the production was a success having the highest sales of the theatre’s season. Critics raved about the show and audiences enjoyed it.