By James V. Ruocco
The genius of Mark Lamos is a directorial summation of great artistry and showmanship linked together by dozens and dozens of exceptional, critically-acclaimed stage achievements ranging from "The Rivals," "Romeo and Juliet," "A Midsummer Night's Dream" and "Tiny Alice" at Hartford Stage to acclaimed Broadway mountings of "Our Country's Good," "Cymbeline" and "Seascape" and equally memorable works at Westport Country Playhouse including "That Championship Season," "Milma's Tale," "Of Mice and Men," "Into the Woods," "Man of La Mancha" and "Twelfth Night."
Lamos' effortless direction - strong, truthful, honest, solid - combined with functional, fully committed creativity, exceptional casting techniques, imagination and theatrical vivacity fuel each production he mounts with a passion and a confidence like no other.
Sadly, all good things must come to an end as it is time to say goodbye.
Effective January 15, 2024, Lamos steps down from his role as artistic director, after 15 full seasons at Westport Country Playhouse.
"Dial M For Murder" is his final directorial effort at the 92-year-old Westport-based venue. It's a swan song of hype, curiosity and glide that showcases Lamos' intuitive directorial strategy, his wit, his savvy plumage and great love of American theatre.
At the same time, one wonders why he chose this stagy, eccentric 1950's melodrama as his exit production when there are hundreds of other more important works he could have commissioned as his fond farewell such as "Long Day's Journey into Night," "A Streetcar Named Desire," "Ghosts," "Sleuth," "Private Lives" and "Death of a Salesman," among others.
It's not that "Dial M For Murder" is not without its moments.
It is fun.
It is intriguing.
It is nostalgic.
It is enjoyable.
But like "The Mousetrap," it is somewhat dated, creaky and dull.
It also suffers from a "you know what you're getting into" quality similar to that of "The Mousetrap," "Night Watch," "Witness for the Prosecution" and "And Then There Were None."
In spite of its shortcomings, it does, however, play better than Frederick Knott's over long and tedious narrative that was penned for the original 1952 Broadway production, which, in Westport, has been rightfully abandoned in favor of Jeffrey Hatcher's improved 2021 adaptation that found life at The Old Globe Theatre in San Diego two years ago.
As written by Hatcher, "Dial M For Murder" retains its original period setting - 1950s London - and premise - a jealous, money hungry husband recruits a hitman via blackmail to murder his wealthy socialite wife after discovering her affair with an American thriller novelist.
Reworked from 2 hrs. and 40 min. to a justified 110 minutes, the playwright has trimmed excessive, outdated dialogue, cut the play from three acts to two, changed the lover's gender to female for a lesbian twist of sorts and perked up the exchanges between the inspector and the suspects along with the addition of several new clues, a surprise twist or two and some pretty savvy killer-victim reenactments, associations and guesswork.
There are also some light and cheeky comic touches throughout this reworked edition punctuated by big reveals, mysterious shadings and an invigorating bag-of-trick freshness that keeps the action flowing in between the creaks, the crannies and oh yes, the obvious.
This mix of energy does keep everyone on stage and in the audience attentive and alert, but every so often the overall tension of "Dial M For Murder," despite Hatcher's extensive rewrites, comes and go, then picks right up again inching toward its nicely packaged conclusion.
Who's in? Who's out?
Who's jealous? Who wants revenge?
Who's the real victim or criminal?
Who ends up getting caught? Who ends up with nothing?
It's by-the-book plotting with answers galore before the final fadeout.
Staging "Dial M For Murder," Mark Lamos clearly relishes this form of period melodrama and its frequent flashes of flamboyance, anxiety, cool, calm and slightly over-the-top. There are undercurrents of danger. There are tilts and spins. There are laughs and dark-at-night shenanigans that are played to the hilt.
Everyone has a motive or look of guilt. Mind games are sufficiently anchored, thus, adding life to the mix. The victim and the perpetrator come packaged with infused boldness, color and determination. Predictability is mimicked, borrowed or purposely amped up. And how it all ends is neatly paced, positioned and justified.
Despite the script's shortcomings, this is Lamos' show from start to finish. Directorially, he's in his element always knowing what buttons to push, when to pause and take a breath, when to pick up the pace, when to point a finger, when to create doubt, when to cut loose or when to unravel the puzzle.
What works especially well here is Lamos' attention to detail, characterization and more importantly, his homage to theatre of the past. Using a 1950s stylization to shape, mold and keep Hatcher's melodrama in sync with its period setting, "Dial M For Murder" adapts a nostalgic tone, beat and rhythm that works especially well under Lamos' watchful eye. Scene changes, for example, are cleverly implemented through the use of an interval curtain which lowers then rises to signal the passage of time. Period whodunit music heightens the play's sense of mystery as does impeccably timed light cues and sound cues. The actual staging, in turn, also mirrors blocking maneuvers and dramatic techniques, expressions and positioning prevalent in Broadway and West End dramas of that era. Eventual build ups of suspense also benefit from Lamos' directorial ingenuity and confident reserve.
"Dial M For Murder" stars Kate Abbruzzese as Margot Wendice, Kate Burton as Inspector Hubbard, Patrick Andrews as Tony Wendice, Krystel Lucas as Maxine Hadley and Denver Milord as Lesgate.
As Tony Wendice, Patrick Andrews smartly projects the character's wounded pride, his obvious jealousy and twisted satisfaction that he has crafted the perfect demise for his cheating wife. Yet while his performance is noteworthy, the fact that he is way shorter than everyone else on stage often works against him, particularly in his scenes with the characters of Lesgate and Margot Wendice.
Kate Abbruzzese settles into the role of Margot Wendice with a glamourous allure, richness and seductiveness that is exactly right for her characterization. As Maxine Hadley, the New York based mystery writer who is Margot's lesbian lover, the stunning Krystel Lucas offers a seemingly bright and affirmative performance, mixed wonderfully with well-orchestrated doses of wit, mystery and budding feminism. She also looks great in Fabian Fidel Aguilar's eye-catching, Balencia-inspired period costumes. Denver Milord slips into the role of hired killer Lesgate with sly, manipulative conviction.
In the role of Inspector Hubbard, Kate Burton, however, rules the roost from her very first entrance right through to the play's conclusion. As the dedicated, probing voice of Scotland Yard, the actress delivers a wonderfully expressive, truthful performance mixed with an open-hearted command and commitment that heightens the twist and fate of the piece and everything else that comes along with it.
As an actress, she's a delight to watch, making every gesture, expression and line of dialogue vibrate with real intelligence, meaning and investigative probe, grab and linger.
PS: If anyone is doing a revival of Edward Albee's 1962 three-hour masterpiece "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" Burton would be the ideal choice to play the lead role of Martha.
Her portrayal of a broken woman engaged in a non-stop verbal slugfest of game-playing, built in destruction, humiliation and alcohol-fueled encounters would not only rock the stage but grab hold of you and never once let you go.
A not-to-be missed experience in the making. And one that could and should happen in the very near future.
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