Murder by the Book is a Hoot! …and You Can Quote Us on That - theHumm December 2016
Murder by the Book is a Hoot! …and You Can Quote Us on That - theHumm December 2016
By — Jane Stott
Studio Theatre Perth is busy preparing a wonderful holiday treat for you: a play that combines an entertaining evening with literary flare. Appropriately entitled Murder by the Book, and written by Duncan Greenwood and Robert King, it promises to entertain with its comic variation of the classic whodunit.
Since the play is all about books and murder, we’ve invited the public libraries in Perth and Smiths Falls, as well as Backbeat Books and Music, The Book Nook and The Bookworm bookstores in Perth, and Arlie’s Books in Smiths Falls, to be a part of this great offering. Each establishment will feature the play posters alongside a display of their favourite murder mysteries, as well as ballots for you to fill out to win a pair of tickets to see this clever little play, where you will no doubt marvel at the twisted plot and nimble wordplay.
We all have our favourite authors, many of whom have written their own original thoughts about murder and mayhem. There are a number of lines in Murder by the Book that are every bit as clever and insightful as those of the masters. Allow me to pair up a few famous quotes with cryptic lines from the play, to whet your appetite for an evening of unpredictability and chess-like strategies.
In the words of Oscar Wilde: “Murder is always a mistake. One should never do anything one cannot talk about after dinner.” One could assume that, according to Wilde, if a wife feels it necessary to murder her husband because he won’t give her a divorce, it would be acceptable as long as it doesn’t interfere with the sherry and cigars served after an enjoyable meal. It may seem a little drastic, but if the dastardly deed is done with professional flair, the husband would not be offended. In Murder by the Book, one character explains that: “I’ve made such a good living out of murder it would be churlish to cavil at finding myself the victim of one. Only not the victim of an amateur, please.”
In Hamlet, William Shakespeare wrote: “No place indeed should murder sanctuarize; revenge should have no bounds.” There is so much that needs to be revenged in this play. Greenwood and King note that: “You’ve misjudged your man, you know. I’m afraid the insurance money wasn’t sufficient compensation for having to put up with you for the rest of your life.”
This sentiment in Euripides: “I love the old ways best, the simple way of poison, where we too are strong as men,” is also echoed to a certain extent in the play: “These are the originals. I kept them just in case. Of course, as you say, they’re completely harmless.”
A talented cast of well-known and new faces from Perth, Smiths Falls and Ottawa will be happy to entertain you, starting on December 8, for seven wonderful performances. What a great early Christmas gift: a ticket to see Murder by the Book, followed on Christmas morning by a book recommended by one of the local libraries and purchased from one of the supporting businesses mentioned above.
Murder by the Book opens at the Studio Theatre in Perth on Thursday, December 8, for seven performances: December 8, 9, 10, 16 and 17 at 7:30pm, and December 11 and 18 at 2pm. Tickets are $22 at the Book Nook (60 Gore St. E., cash only), and $22 plus convenience fee at Shadowfax (67 Foster St., 267–6817, shadowfax.on.ca) and Tickets Please (in the Matheson House Museum Visitor Centre, 11 Gore St. E., 485–6434, ticketsplease.ca), both of which accept in-store, phone, online and credit card purchases. Tickets are $24 at the door, and $10 at the door for students with ID. Attend opening night and save $5!
Don’t forget to pick up tickets to the play, and visit the local libraries and bookstores listed above for a chance to win tickets to this delicious little mystery.
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Murder by the Book is a Hoot! …and You Can Quote Us on That - theHumm December 2016
By — Jane Stott
Studio Theatre Perth is busy preparing a wonderful holiday treat for you: a play that combines an entertaining evening with literary flare. Appropriately entitled Murder by the Book, and written by......
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Jul 18 - 27 Bloomfest Garden Art Show & Sale
Jul 18 - 27 Bloomfest Garden Art Show & Sale
Jul 18 - 27 Bloomfest Garden Art Show & Sale
Jul 18 - 27 Bloomfest Garden Art Show & Sale
Jul 18 - 27 Bloomfest Garden Art Show & Sale
Jul 18 - 27 Bloomfest Garden Art Show & Sale
Jul 18 - 27 Bloomfest Garden Art Show & Sale
Jul 18 - 27 Bloomfest Garden Art Show & Sale
Jul 18 - 27 Bloomfest Garden Art Show & Sale
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