Melodrama and Murder at the Eureka Theatre
Murder for Two, a comedy murder mystery musical now being produced by 42nd Street Moon, is a tour de force, frenetic ninety minutes of inquiries by Adam Overett as investigating Officer Marcus Moscowicz. His only suspect is played by hyperkinetic Joe Kinosian as all the usual suspects. Joe and Adam both swap off on playing the onstage grand piano as the clueless Moscowicz tries to get a straight answer from Joe while he plays nine different characters, all having something to do with the murder of novelist Arthur Whitney, an invisible dead body lying downstage center during the entire show. The two earnest actors play seriously but never pretend that they are not having fun.
The Agatha Christie-inflected story opens with a histrionic death in blackout at the home of the celebrated novelist Whitney. When the lights come up Moscowicz tries to sort out the clues he can get from the constantly changing array of characters Kinosian deftly portrays. As an impressionist Kinosian makes abrupt, well delineated changes between implicated characters such as Mrs. Dahlia Whitney, the ditzy widow sure to be guilty of something, Steph Whitney, obviously with underhanded motivations, the impenetrable psychiatrist Dr. Griff, and various nefarious others such as Yonkers and Skid. Kinosian’s sweat-drenched stage crossings from a chair upstage of a screen to the grand piano are non-stop and his nellie leg crossings are vampy.
The clues develop through dialogue and songs by Kellen Blair and Kinosian. “Waiting in the Dark” portends the invisible death scene of the invisible corpse. Two tenuously related themes of formality and theft resonate through songs such as “Protocol Says” and “Solving the Crime” to the finale, the question of who stole a certain substance. The piano playing duo present workman-like voices that are very pleasant and do not try to stretch themselves. Their keyboard staging is phenomenal.
Officer Marcus poses questions with a wide-eyed innocence as he dashes with well-motivated questioning gestures from the piano to the murder scene. Just as he jumps up from the piano to see the non-existent dead body, Kinosian as Mrs. Dahlia or some lesser character takes over the keyboard without missing a beat. This seamless live music continues through the play. Kinosian seems to do all the work for Overett as his straight man. The wide variety of his impressionisms, from a ballerina to an aspiring detective, reaches an artistic peak in his portrayal of a 12-member boys’ choir.
The set and musical stylization of Murder for Two are a departure from the usual 42nd Street Moon productions. This musical comedy was developed at The Adirondack Theatre Festival in New York state for their 2010 season and is presented here in association with The Eureka Theatre. Their usual ensemble performances are here replaced by a musical theatre duo which has refined its act to rote through several performances. The wit, spark and energy of Overett and Kinosian have definitely been polished to a high sheen by multiple performances.
Murder for Two: A Killer Musical continues through November 21 at Eureka Theatre, 215 Jackson Street, San Francisco. Tickets ($24 to $44) are available online at 42nd Street Moon or by phone at 415.255.8207.