Stage Review - A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder (Port Gamble Theatre)
Stage Review - A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder
Presented By: Port Gamble Theatre - Port Gamble, WA
Show Run: March 28 - April 13, 2025
Date Reviewed: Saturday, March 29, 2025 (Opening Weekend)
Run Time: 2 Hours, 45 Minutes (including a 15 minute intermission)
Reviewed By: Greg Heilman
While some theaters advertise themselves with brightly lit marquees, and stand out among their neighbors with classic or ornamental architecture, others are tucked away in the far reaches of a county, or otherwise contained within an unassuming facade. Sometimes, what happens inside these more or less hidden or lesser known theatre buildings is just as good as the work being produced in those more ornate buildings. Such is the case with Port Gamble Theatre, and their latest production on stage through April 13, A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder. The musical comedy, which is based on the 1907 fictional novel Israel Rank: The Autobiography of a Criminal, written by Roy Horniman, first debuted on Broadway in 2013 and received positive reviews, along with a number of Tony nominations, and four wins, including Best Musical. It’s become a popular show on the regional theatre circuit, and it’s no wonder. The story itself is a riot, completely irreverent and self-deprecating, its songs are fun, with catchy melodies and smartly written lyrics, and the characters are entertainingly written. Credit for this goes to Robert L. Freedman and Steven Ludvak, Freedman being the book writer, with music by Ludvak, and the two acting as collaborators on the show’s lyrics. The Port Gamble production is directed by Peggy Whelen, who has put together a cast that delivers both the characters and the music with all of the humor and skill that the show requires, and a design team that has come up with some awfully creative ways to present the various settings and locales that are a part of the storytelling.
The story begins with an ensemble of characters entering the stage, singing a warning to the audience, imploring that those with a “weaker constitution” leave the theatre as what they’re about to see may prove “disturbing”. It is, after all, a tale of love and, most certainly, murder. Once that ensemble departs, and I will say that the vocal quality of the group is just a hint at what is in store for the remainder of the show musically, the audience is presented with “Monty” Navarro, at a desk and writing his memoirs, which he decides to call, of course, A Gentleman’s Guide to Murder……to Love, and Murder, on what is perceived to be the eve of his execution. James Sgambati is Monty and, as he’s writing, his words are dictated using a recorded voiceover. Ultimately, having James read out what he is writing in real time would be preferred, the audio on the voiceover sounds a bit “canned”, it makes this small part feel a little less authentic, and there are a few of these sprinkled throughout. What is smartly done with these interludes, though, is that while Monty is at his desk, scribbling his memories, the crew is busy behind the curtain making set changes. The beauty of this is that there is really no break between scenes, or I should say that the breaks are filled with substance, I would just change how James’ voice is used to recite the words on Monty’s pages. While I’m on the subject of set changes, it’s quite impressive the work that Arthur Dent has done with the scenic design. The genius of the set is in the flexibility of the primary piece, which starts as the background of Monty’s flat, but transforms, like origami, into any number of shapes to represent other locations, including, but not limited to, a saloon, a dining room, a courtroom, castle, gym, or even an outdoor courtyard. During each scene change, the piece, constructed by a team led by Brad Camp, is moved around and other pieces are brought on or off to provide detail to each setting. There’s nothing altogether special about the design of the pieces themselves, many are pieces of wood with images of prop items painted on, but given the intricacy of how the piece moves and shifts, anything more would be too much. The only callout I have with anything on the design side, and this goes for the set, lighting, and sound, is that there should be a way to make the changes between scenes a little quieter. Even though James, as Monty, is writing at his desk, the work behind the curtain is clearly audible throughout the auditorium, and I understand with the movement of large wooden pieces on a stage that is over 100 years old some noise is going to carry, but it’s distracting at times, and if there’s a way to muffle the sound, just a little bit, it would be most helpful.
As Monty writes his story, James steps away from the desk and proceeds into his narrative, starting in his flat shortly after the death of his mother, when he is met by Marietta Shingle (Charis Goolsby), who has arrived to tell him that, no, Monty’s late mother was not just a lowly washerwoman, she was actually a member of the aristocratic D’Ysquith family, that when she married his father, a Castilian musician with the last name Navarro, Isabel (Monty’s mother) was disowned by the family as a result of what they considered her ultimate transgression. Shingle explains this all to Monty in “You’re a D’Ysquith”, a musical number that features Charis made up to appear to be a much older woman, but more than that it highlights her strong singing voice, a soprano that is just one of a trio of stunning female voices in this production. Part of the information provided is that Monty, as a result of all of this, is ninth in line for the Earldom of Highhurst. Intrigued, he writes to the head of the D’Ysquith family, Lord Asquith D’Ysquith, Sr., to explain his situation and ask if the elder D’Ysquith might be so inclined to find some employment for him. Meanwhile, Monty has his own issues in love. His attraction is toward Sibella Hallward (Ila Dreessen), though she will not marry him due to his lack of social and financial status, opting instead to turn her matrimonial gaze toward Lionel Holland. Though Monty explains his new situation to Sibella, and she “sort of” believes it, she’s not swayed, though she does point out to him that eight people would have to die for Monty to earn his place, and intrigued at the thought of that, his thoughts turn to how he can improve his own standing, and with that the main story arc of the musical is set into motion. Ila is fabulous in this role as Sibella. She’s self-centered, egotistical, and aloof, she carries herself with a wonderful posture, and has a way about her, a beauty with a sort of smirk that she employs quite well, especially in Act 2 when she’s all of a sudden fighting for Monty’s attention. All of this isn’t to mention her voice and her incredible vocal talent, which is on display in songs like “I Don’t Know What I’d Do” and “Poor Monty” in Act 1.
As the show progresses, Monty worms his way into the D’Ysquith family, and as you might imagine, he begins to work his way up the chain, so to speak. Each D’Ysquith he meets seems to uncannily provide some sort of hint about their weaknesses, or how they can be killed, and Monty, always vigilant, is most definitely paying attention. Each situation is funny, but even funnier is that every single D’Ysquith is played by the same person in this show, Hank Hayden. It’s standard in this show for one person to play the entire D’Ysquith family, but to watch Hank do it is to be thoroughly entertained. He is so funny, and so talented both in presenting each of these characters and in performing his musical numbers, and he’s in a lot of them. Perhaps the best is “Better With a Man”, in which there’s so much innuendo and double-entendre in this number, it can’t help but be one of the funniest in the show. A duet with James’ Monty, it takes both of these actors to make it work, and they do very well. Out of all of the family members, perhaps the funniest, though, is the Earl himself, he’s hilariously mean, but altogether Hank has to show a good deal of versatility to portray the wide breadth of characters that he does. At the same time he’s probably the best model for Beth Anne Galloway’s costumes, since he has to wear so many of them. Beth Anne’s costumes in this show are all stunning, the women’s dresses are big and full, and ornately accessorized, while the men’s costumes are right for their individual stations, Monty’s getting more complex and mature as he works his way up toward the Earlship. It’s top notch costume work.
The one D’Ysquith that isn’t in the line of succession, and it’s a good thing for Monty’s sake, since he feels a natural attraction toward her, is Phoebe, sister to one of the D’Ysquiths who happened to prematurely lose his life in a freak accident, imagine that. The two bond after her brother’s accident and form a strong bond, Monty feeling like if he can’t marry Sibella, Phoebe is the next best thing. Nina Polachek plays Phoebe, and just like Charis and Ila, brings a superior vocal ability to this production, and with power to boot. Nina and James have a wonderful duet with “Inside Out” in Act 1, but it’s the love triangle that ensues between Monty, Sibella, and Phoebe in Act 2, when Phoebe comes to call on Monty with the ever popular “I’ve Decided to Marry You”, that is the true showcase for everything that is so good about this entire production. It starts with the set, how that origami backdrop piece is configured to represent two rooms and a foyer/hallway, one room in which Sibella hides out when Phoebe shows up, the second a drawing room where Phoebe pledges herself to Monty, and then the space between, each room separated from the hallway area by a door. Then there’s the choreography. Livi Ingram has done a nice job with the choreography throughout the entire show, from the ensemble numbers, to the smaller pieces, but this one takes the cake. There’s a lot of movement in this song, most of it with James’ Monty moving between rooms, sometimes literally stretched between the two. Finally, there are the vocals, and I feel like this number is the musical highlight of the show, that this song is the payoff. To hear both Ila and Nina together is pure magic, though at times on Saturday I felt Ila could have used a little more volume to match Nina’s power, not necessarily in this song, but more in “That Horrible Woman”, later in Act 2. Adding James to the mix is good as well, he’s a fine singer, and when he’s in the comfortable areas of his range, he’s very good, it’s only when he’s on the periphery, especially in the higher reaches that he struggles a bit, at least that was my experience on Sunday. “I’ve Decided to Marry You” has just about everything, and it alone is an enthralling and entertaining piece of theatre, though there are some others that come pretty close. Oh, and on Ila and Nina, the glares that they give each other throughout the show as Sibella and Phoebe are just priceless. If looks could kill……
The opening number for Act 2, “Why Are All the D’Ysquith’s Dying” is the best way to come out of intermission. It features the entire ensemble, giving each member a chance to feature vocally, and it also shows off Livi’s choreography along with the entire group’s ability to perform it, plus it contains some excellent Barbershop-style harmony, music director Catherine Benson being responsible for all of the wonderfulness that is the music in this show. I would have loved to see Port Gamble use live music rather than the pre-recorded tracks that it does, it’s always preferred in my opinion, but this group does exceedingly well with the canned tracks that they have to work with. Becky Eastgard, David Ward, Kestrel Rundle, Amanda Fish, Jim Benson-Cash, and Jesse Ellis make up this talented group that represent mourners, paintings, statues, and other supporting characters in the story. They’re all also talented singers in their own right. Kestrel is also Lady Eugenia, the Earl’s wife, and is supremely funny, literally making the dinner scene in Act 2 with the bantering between her character and Hank’s Earl. It’s bickering in the funniest way possible.
Sometimes the best things are found in the most out of the way places. The Port Gamble Theatre production of A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder is one example of this. The story itself is extremely funny, self-deprecating and irreverent, and its songs are catchy and fun. The Port Gamble production, under the direction of Peggy Whelen, is excellent from top to bottom. From its big and beautiful costumes, to its inventively constructed set pieces, creatively everything works, but it’s the cast of this show that sets it apart. Superbly beautiful voices come together with clever choreography, and excellent acting to produce a magical musical theatre experience, the quality of which is normally seen on stages much larger than this, and it’s a show that is well worth the trip out to beautiful Port Gamble to see.
A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder runs on stage at the Port Gamble Theatre through April 13. For more information, including ticket availability and sales, visit https://portgambletheater.com/.
Photo credit: Brad Camp
