The National Tour of "A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder"
Whilst watching the national tour of the Tony Award Best Musical winner, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder", all I could think was "WOW, I would have killed myself if I was a Tony Award voter in 2014!" After Midnight, Aladdin, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, AND A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder?!? I could never have possibly chosen because they are all wonderful, amazing shows. I could easily see why this show won Best Musical in 2014, because I honestly loved this show.
A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder is a delightful show that is about a man named Monty Navarro who has found out that he is eighth in line in the D'Ysquith family to become the Earl of Highhurst (a fictional place, I'm presuming) and he decides that he is going to have to kill all of the people ahead of him in the line of succession in order to become the Earl. I am not going to describe anymore of the plot because I think it is way better when you go into this show completely cold, like I did. I know this is a statement that is overused by so many people, but this show actually had me on the edge of my seat.
The show was written by Robert L. Freedman (Book and Lyrics) and Steven Lutvak (Music and Lyrics) and it is such a clever show. In the killing of each of the eight characters they are completely original and didn't pull out all of the overused murder cliches. It is such a funny show, when it needs to be, and everything about it was just so smart and fresh. The show's score is gorgeous and each of the songs are such great character numbers. Each of the character's introductory songs clearly establish who they are and what purpose they serve in the story. That aspect really played a huge part in making this show as strong as it was. I'm sure that so many of these songs are on their way to becoming audition standards because of all of the opportunities it provides performers to show off their acting and singing chops, more so than songs in some other musicals do. Something else that I really enjoyed about the show's score was the influence of other musical theatre composers that you can hear in each song. Throughout the show, I heard hints of Gilbert & Sullivan, Stephen Sondheim, and many other great composers. The one complaint I have about the show is that there is a huge dinner scene in the second act that goes on for a bit too long. Lots of important things happen in that scene, but I feel like it could be condensed because I zoned out a couple of times during that scene. Other than that very minor thing, I thought it was such a fantastic, spot on show.
The show's company was filled with astounding talent. Leading the cast as all eight members of the D'Ysquith family at the performance I attended was understudy, Conor McGriffin, who stole the show with his hilarious and witty interpretations of each member of the D'Ysquith family every chance he got. He did not miss a single beat for the entire performance and he walks away with the entire show. In the role of Monty Navarro, Blake Price was very suave and he had such a pretty voice that filled me with such joy, every time he sang. His chemistry with McGriffin in every character that he played was lovely and really made my heart happy. A highlight of the show was their duet, "Better With a Man."
The two actresses, Coleen McLaughin and Erin McIntyre, who played Monty's love interests, Sibella and Phoebe, were marvelous. McLaughin had such Annaleigh Ashford type qualities to her performance and was so charismatic throughout the entire show. As Phoebe D'Ysquith, McIntyre's voice soared to the rafters and her acting was so quirky and cute and she was just lovely. McLaughin and McIntyre's performance of "I've Decided to Marry You" with Price as Monty Navarro was the best part of the entire show.
Darko Tresnjak and Peggy Hickey's direction was very precise. Only ten performers are in the show, but the blocking and written material makes it seem like it could be a full cast of thirty. This show also won Best Direction at the 2014 Tony Awards and it is very easy to see why. Alexander Dodge's scenic design is also very quaint and beautiful, along with Linda Cho's exquisite costume design.
A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder was such a charming and refreshing show. I would recommend it to anyone who loves theatre. As I stated earlier, if I were voting for the 2014 Tony Awards, I would have had such a hard time choosing which show should win Best Musical. I think that I would have ultimately voted on this show because shows like Aladdin and Beautiful: The Carole King Musical are a dime a dozen. This show is more out there and original than the other three nominees, which is why it won and why you should go see this show. This concludes my love letter.
A GENTLEMEN'S GUIDE TO LOVE AND MURDER
Book & Lyrics by ROBERT L. FREEDMAN
Music & Lyrics by STEVEN LUTVAK
For more information on the national tour of A GENTLEMEN'S GUIDE TO LOVE AND MURDER, please visit https://gentlemansguideontour.com/
The current cast of the national tour of A GENTLEMEN'S GUIDE TO LOVE AND MURDER consists of:
The D'Ysquith Family- JAMES TAYLOR ODOM
Monty Navarro- BLAKE PRICE
Sibella Hallward- COLLENN McLAUGHIN
Phoebe D'Ysquith- ERIN McINTYRE
Magistrate- TIMOTHY AARON COOPER
Tom Copley- ASHTON MICHAEL COREY
Lady Eugnia/Tour Guide- COLEEN GALLAGHER
Miss Barley- BRIANA GANTSWEG
Miss Shingle- KRISTEN KANE
Ensemble- CONOR McGIFFIN
Swings- MIA FITZGIBBON, TYLER LENHART, RYNE NARDECCHIA, ROSIE WEBBER
A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder is a delightful show that is about a man named Monty Navarro who has found out that he is eighth in line in the D'Ysquith family to become the Earl of Highhurst (a fictional place, I'm presuming) and he decides that he is going to have to kill all of the people ahead of him in the line of succession in order to become the Earl. I am not going to describe anymore of the plot because I think it is way better when you go into this show completely cold, like I did. I know this is a statement that is overused by so many people, but this show actually had me on the edge of my seat.
The show was written by Robert L. Freedman (Book and Lyrics) and Steven Lutvak (Music and Lyrics) and it is such a clever show. In the killing of each of the eight characters they are completely original and didn't pull out all of the overused murder cliches. It is such a funny show, when it needs to be, and everything about it was just so smart and fresh. The show's score is gorgeous and each of the songs are such great character numbers. Each of the character's introductory songs clearly establish who they are and what purpose they serve in the story. That aspect really played a huge part in making this show as strong as it was. I'm sure that so many of these songs are on their way to becoming audition standards because of all of the opportunities it provides performers to show off their acting and singing chops, more so than songs in some other musicals do. Something else that I really enjoyed about the show's score was the influence of other musical theatre composers that you can hear in each song. Throughout the show, I heard hints of Gilbert & Sullivan, Stephen Sondheim, and many other great composers. The one complaint I have about the show is that there is a huge dinner scene in the second act that goes on for a bit too long. Lots of important things happen in that scene, but I feel like it could be condensed because I zoned out a couple of times during that scene. Other than that very minor thing, I thought it was such a fantastic, spot on show.
The show's company was filled with astounding talent. Leading the cast as all eight members of the D'Ysquith family at the performance I attended was understudy, Conor McGriffin, who stole the show with his hilarious and witty interpretations of each member of the D'Ysquith family every chance he got. He did not miss a single beat for the entire performance and he walks away with the entire show. In the role of Monty Navarro, Blake Price was very suave and he had such a pretty voice that filled me with such joy, every time he sang. His chemistry with McGriffin in every character that he played was lovely and really made my heart happy. A highlight of the show was their duet, "Better With a Man."
 |
| Coleen McLaughin (Sibella Hallward), Blake Price (Monty Navarro), and Erin McIntyre (Phoebe D'Ysquith) |
The two actresses, Coleen McLaughin and Erin McIntyre, who played Monty's love interests, Sibella and Phoebe, were marvelous. McLaughin had such Annaleigh Ashford type qualities to her performance and was so charismatic throughout the entire show. As Phoebe D'Ysquith, McIntyre's voice soared to the rafters and her acting was so quirky and cute and she was just lovely. McLaughin and McIntyre's performance of "I've Decided to Marry You" with Price as Monty Navarro was the best part of the entire show.
Darko Tresnjak and Peggy Hickey's direction was very precise. Only ten performers are in the show, but the blocking and written material makes it seem like it could be a full cast of thirty. This show also won Best Direction at the 2014 Tony Awards and it is very easy to see why. Alexander Dodge's scenic design is also very quaint and beautiful, along with Linda Cho's exquisite costume design.
A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder was such a charming and refreshing show. I would recommend it to anyone who loves theatre. As I stated earlier, if I were voting for the 2014 Tony Awards, I would have had such a hard time choosing which show should win Best Musical. I think that I would have ultimately voted on this show because shows like Aladdin and Beautiful: The Carole King Musical are a dime a dozen. This show is more out there and original than the other three nominees, which is why it won and why you should go see this show. This concludes my love letter.
 | |
Book & Lyrics by ROBERT L. FREEDMAN
Music & Lyrics by STEVEN LUTVAK
For more information on the national tour of A GENTLEMEN'S GUIDE TO LOVE AND MURDER, please visit https://gentlemansguideontour.com/
The current cast of the national tour of A GENTLEMEN'S GUIDE TO LOVE AND MURDER consists of:
The D'Ysquith Family- JAMES TAYLOR ODOM
Monty Navarro- BLAKE PRICE
Sibella Hallward- COLLENN McLAUGHIN
Phoebe D'Ysquith- ERIN McINTYRE
Magistrate- TIMOTHY AARON COOPER
Tom Copley- ASHTON MICHAEL COREY
Lady Eugnia/Tour Guide- COLEEN GALLAGHER
Miss Barley- BRIANA GANTSWEG
Miss Shingle- KRISTEN KANE
Ensemble- CONOR McGIFFIN
Swings- MIA FITZGIBBON, TYLER LENHART, RYNE NARDECCHIA, ROSIE WEBBER
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