A LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Welcome back to Farmers Alley Theatre!

Do you know what my favorite part of a performance is at Farmers Alley Theatre? It’s actually two-fold. As Executive Director, I love greeting our patrons when they arrive in our lobby. The excitement and buzz during that half an hour before the show begins as our audience takes their seats and chatter fills our space is truly magical as the anticipation for the performance begins.

But even more than that, I love standing by the theatre exit, thanking you for spending your evening with us, seeing the smiling faces and teary-eyes (for certain shows) and having conversations with you about what we just experienced. The work we do means nothing without you, our audience. More than ever, we’re so grateful that people spend their time and dollars on such a vital aspect of humanity as the theatrical arts. Thank you.

We want to bring the magic of theatre to as many people as possible. And that is why this year, we’ve expanded our ticketing programs to offer more options and choices for our patrons. We’ve made it easier than ever to be a Season Member with 4 ticket packages for any budget. Don’t forget that as a subscriber you get not only 15% off tickets, but the ability to get 10% off any additional tickets you’d like to purchase. And for the first time ever we are offering a ‘preview performance’ before opening night with tickets nearly 50% off our standard prices.

Again, thank you for attending A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder. We hope you’ll join us again this year, whether during our Christmas revue featuring the music of Tony Bennett, one of our exciting new plays this spring, The Great Leap, Becoming Dr. Ruth or Chicken & Biscuits, or for our closing show, Jonathan Larson’s Tony and Pulitzer Prize winning rock opera, RENT.

If you see me in the lobby, say hi—let’s chat about theatre and how it impacts our lives—and then let’s do it all again the following night, month, year. I know I’ll be here feeling the magic—and I want to share it with you.

Rob Weiner

Executive Director

DIRECTORS NOTE

This is the third show I’ve directed in the last nine months with “murder” in the title.  Last December at Farmer’s Alley was the farcical “Murder For Two.” February brought “Murder On the Orient Express” at the Kalamazoo Civic, and now “A Gentleman’s Guide To Love and Murder!” The last marries the first two, a zany romp through comical farce with a dash of Agatha Christie!

Taking place in 1909, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder owes its inspiration to a book first published in 1907. Israel Rank: The Autobiography of a Criminal by Roy Horniman is a dark comedy about a serial killer who murders his way through the line of succession to become the Earl of Gascoyne.

Monty Navarro, is a poor, but lovable, heir to nothing, who has just buried his beloved mother. When an old family friend reveals that Monty is, in fact, ninth in line to a powerful earldom, the young Navarro plans to reclaim the wealth and prestige so cruelly denied any way he can. Like all of us, he desires love and success, but he lives in a society that tells him there’s no path to achieving those things. He rails against that. This rich family treated his mother cruelly, and so he takes on this righteous avenger persona.

From his first bumbling plans to larger, grander ploys, our misguided Monty will take you through a murderous misadventure, all underscored by wonderfully whimsical music. There are so many ways a family member might “accidentally” meet his or her end. Adding to the comedic complexity, the victims of the numerous murders are all played by just one actor. Farmers Alley’s Artistic Director, Jeremy Koch, plays all eight of the D’Ysquith (Dies Quick?) family members who stand between Monty and a life of ease and aristocracy.  As the bodies stack up, you might start to think of Monty as a monster. But as each succeeding D’Ysquith family member reveals his or herself to be more callous and self-serving than the last, it becomes less clear who is the true villain in this delightfully deadly musical.

Our Monty is more lady-killer than manslayer, and this musical pits him against amorous odds between two beautiful women. Structurally, he is the hero. But it depends on how you choose to define “hero” and “villain.” Even though the show is “merely” a comedy, it asks some provocative questions about entitlement, revenge, justice, forgiveness, and whether the ends can ever “justify the means.” Monty, like the villains in Shakespeare’s Richard III and in Sondheim’s Sweeney Todd (with their deeply human flaws and motivations) somehow endear us to their ill-fated ambitions. Monty goes about his bloody business with irresistible playfulness and charm.  As Monty walks the tightrope between right and wrong, love and passion, murder and… more murder, our heroic anti-hero makes this show much more than simply a guilty pleasure.

A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder was a hit when it opened on Broadway in 2013, sweeping up seven Drama Desk awards and four Tonys, including one for Best Musical. As the old saying goes, “Laughter is the best medicine!” This is true British farce at its best… and just what the doctor ordered!   So, don’t take this too seriously and just have fun as we take you back to the turn of the century England with its divided classes based on factors of wealth, occupation, and education. Oh, the superiority of the upper class!

Enjoy!   

Kathy Mulay