By George Basler
A murder plot that is both fiendishly clever and hilariously funny will open BLAST (Bold Local Artists of the Southern Tier)’s fourth season at the Cider Mill Stage in Endicott on Friday (Sept. 27).
The musical, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, tells the story of Monty Navarro in early 20th century London, who learns he is eighth in line for an English family’s fortune. After learning the news, Monty concocts a plot to help things along by knocking off the family members ahead of him and claiming the inheritance.
The show was a Broadway hit, winning won four Tony Awards in 2014, including Best Musical, and spawning two national tours.
“It totally resonates with our audience. It’s a comedy and a musical that also has elements of murder and mystery,” said BLAST Artistic Director Rob Egan, who is directing the show, which will run two weekends through Oct. 6 at the Cider Mill stage.
The production will inaugurate a season that is “a little different” for BLAST, Egan said. In addition to six multi-weekend productions, including the annual A Christmas Carol in December, the company will present two smaller shows — What the Constitution Means to Me and Matt & Ben –– that are “on the fringe of what are normal offerings are,” he said.
Here is an outline of the season:
Opening show
A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, which opens the season, has a local connection, Egan said. Binghamton University alumnus Steven Lutvak wrote the music and lyrics for the show, which is based on the 1907 fictional novel Israel Rank: The Autobiography of a Criminal. The novel was also the source for the 1949 British film Kind Hearts and Coronets.
“To me, it’s kind of like Gilbert & Sullivan meets Spamalot,” Egan said. The music parodies operetta while the story has a plethora of outrageous humor and innuendo. The murders are played in a “humorous” fashion.
The 16-member BLAST cast is filled with familiar faces from other local and regional productions. Jan DeAngelo will play every one of the unsuspecting murder victims. Chris Vanderwerker is playing the homicidal Monty, who longs for both love and money.
The cast also features Kate Murray, Anna Rizzotti, Amanda Blake, Vernicia Elie, Andrea Gregori, Rick Kumpon, Matthew O’Ryan, Amelia Rose, Christine Ryder. Brasha Smith, Mitch Tiffany, Sarah Wallikas, Sammie Watts and Isaac Weber. A seven-member live orchestra, under the direction of Sonny DeWitt, will accompany the actors.
While the show features a parade of murders, there is nothing scary, Egan said. He rated it PG-13.
Fall productions
Next up for the fall season is one of the smaller shows, What the Constitution Mean to Me, by American playwright Heidi Schreck. It premiered on Broadway in 2019 and was a finalist for the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.
The main character, played originally by Schreck, performs some scenes as her modern self and others as her 15-year-old self as she participates in Constitutional debate contests. Themes in the play include women’s rights, immigration and the history of the United States.
Hillori Schenker, a government teacher at Montrose Area High School, will play the role in BLAST’s production, which will run Oct. 17-20. “We’re not going to tell people how to vote, but we hope it makes them think clearly about things that are happening now,” Egan said.
BLAST will then continue its pattern of staging a family comedy/drama each season by presenting Making God Laugh Nov. 15-24. The dramedy by Sean Grennan follows a couple as they celebrate holidays with their three children through three decades. It has both laughs and poignant moments, Egan said.
Finally, A Christmas Carol, will celebrate its 45th year as a Southern Tier holiday tradition Dec. 13-22. The adaptation by Binghamton University Professor John Bielenberg since 1979 with even some of the same music used in the original production.
Chris Nickerson will again play Scrooge this year.
Winter and spring
The 2025 winter/spring schedule will begin with the play Matt and Ben to be performed the weekend of Jan. 16-19. Written by Mindy Kaling and Brenda Withers, it is an absurdist comedy about Matt Damon and Ben Affleck as they write the Oscar-winning movie Good Will Hunting.
The twist is that the two female actors play the Hollywood “golden boys.”
Laughs will also be on order Feb 14-23 for Hamlet 2 (Better Than the Original). The play is the work of Sam Bobrick who wrote Murder at Howard Johnson’s, which BLAST performed a couple of seasons ago.
Bobrick keeps the plot points of Shakespeare’s classic play but reinvents them for laughs by showcasing a sketch comedy/treatment. “It’s definitely not your English teacher’s Shakespeare,” a BLAST release emphasizes.
Next up is The Cottage, an outright farce by American playwright Sandy Rustin. Described as a modern take on a Noel Coward comedy, it’s a potentially murderous tale of sex, betrayal and love. The action takes place when Sylvia Van Kipness decides to expose her love affair to her husband and her lover’s wife.
The play will run April 4-13.
BLAST will close the season with Next to Normal, a rock musical with book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt. The story centers on a mother who struggles with worsening bipolar disorder and the effect managing her illness has on her family.
The musical won three Tony Awards and 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It will run from May 23-June 1.
BLAST designed the season to hopefully appeal to new, younger audience members as well as BLAST’s core theater goers, Egan said. “We’re trying to keep things relevant to people, and accessible to people,” he concluded.
IF YOU GO: BLAST (Bold Local Artists of the Southern Tier) will open its season with A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder Sept. 27-Oct 6 at the Cider Mill Stage, 2 Nanticoke Ave., Endicott. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday performances are at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $32, including fees. Advance tickets can be ordered on the Cider Mill Stage’s website, www.cidermillstage.com, or call 607-3231-9630.
