By Michael Buzzelli
When Tony Wendice (Josh Innerst) learns that his wife Margot (Brooke Turner) is having an affair with Maxine (Shannon Arielle Williams), he plans the perfect murder – or so he believes – in “Dial M for Murder.’
The dastardly husband can’t just divorce Margot. She’s the one with the family money that keeps him in the lifestyle he believes he deserves. Instead he concocts evil machinations to off the beautiful blonde heiress. His plan involves finding a ne’er-do-well from his college days, Charles Swann (Michael Patrick Trimm), now living under the alias Lesgate (after a series of aliases that sounded like all the names from the firm of Price-Waterhouse Coopers).
While the play is based on an classic Hitchcock thriller from 1954, ‘Burgh Vivant would like to insert a brief pause to mention upcoming spoilers.
Tony’s plan to off his wife goes awry when Margot plunges her sewing scissors into her assailant’s back, killing the attempted murdering instead of the marked victim.
But Tony is accustomed to improvisation. He “Yes Ands” the shit out of the situation, concealing evidence and planting an incriminating love letter from Maxine to Margot on Lesgate’s body. Now, he has framed Margot as the killer and set up Lesgate’s corpse up as a blackmailer she murdered to protect her lesbian relationship.
Maxine, fighting for the life of her lover, realizes that Inspector Hubbard (Ken Bolden) cannot solve the crime, and takes it upon herself to aid him.
Playwright Jeffery Hatcher (“Compleat Female Stage Beauty”) adapts the Alfred Hitchcock thrilling suspense tale with a bit of a modern twist.
Side note: It’s as modernized as it can be for a show about a rotary landline telephone.
Additional side note to Millennials: In the ancient times, telephones were stationery devices that were housed in a living room, bedroom or kitchen. They did not text, take photos or post them to social media sites. The telephone in question had a rotary dial, a spinny little contraption that had numbers and letters on it .
In the update author Mark becomes Maxine, adding an additional layer of scandal to the love affair.
Turner is a charming lead. She is so likable in the role, the audience gasped when she’s framed for murder.
Innerst does a fantastic job as the diabolical hubby and Trimm is the perfect patsy for his misdeeds. The interaction between Innerst and Trimm is boils with a palpable intensity.
Williams, a newcomer to the Public’s stage, has very few acting credits, but you won’t be able to tell. She is delightful.
Bolden is wonderfully comedic as the inept inspector. His battle with a metronome on the shelf of the Wendice estate is riotously funny. Bolden isn’t just comic relief, however, he brings a depth and soul to the character.
Scenic designer Antonio Troy Ferron has created a sumptuous living space, furnished with impeccable style and panache. The kind of home the real -if she were real – Margot would live in.
Margot is swathed in flawless outfits by costume designer Tracy Dorman.
The accents seem authentic and distinct. Kudos to Nancy McNulty McGeever and her ability to coax the posh West End London accent out of Turner and Innerst . Note the long A sound in their speech patterns.
Director Celine Rosenthal commands a tight ship. The blocking is kinetic, wonderfully aided by Hatcher’s crisp and precise dialogue.
It may not be a perfect crime, but it’s a perfect play.
“Dial M for Murder” runs until September 29 at the O’Reilly Theater, Pittsburgh Public Theater, 621 Penn Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. For more information, click here.
