A GENTLEMAN'S GUIDE TO LOVE AND MURDER to be Presented at Santa Fe Playhouse in July

Santa Fe Playhouse will present the four Tony Award-winning Edwardian-style murderous musical farce, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder. With a book by Robert L. Freedman, music by Steven Lutvak, and lyrics by Freedman and Lutvak. The production will be directed by Rebecca Aparicio (Kennedy Center: Beastgirl [Helen Hayes Nomination])

A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder will run July 13 through August 12, 2023 on the mainstage (142 East De Vargas Street, Santa Fe, NM 87501), Thursdays and Fridays at 7:30 pm, and Saturdays at 2 pm and 7:30 pm (no matinee on July 15). Opening Night is Saturday, July 15 at 7:30 pm.

"Serial killers may be all the rage on bookshelves and television screens - so ubiquitous, you'd think they made up a major demographic of the world population - but they are comparatively rare in the peppier precincts of musical theater. Now, after a long dry spell, Broadway has a deadly sociopath to call its own. Please give a hearty welcome to Monty Navarro, the conniving killer who helps turn murder most foul into entertainment most merry in the new musical A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder." - Charles Isherwood, The New York Times

When British, newly orphaned Monty Navarro discovers he's ninth in line to inherit the Earldom of Highhurst, he decides to murder every member of the high-society D'Ysquith family standing in his way, all the while keeping a mistress, Sibella Hallward, and courting the young Phoebe D'Ysquith. In this laugh-filled musical, one actor plays all eight of the doomed heirs.

A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder is based on Roy Horniman's 1907 novel, Israel Rank. It premiered at Hartford Stage in October 2012, followed by a March 2013 run at The Old Globe Theatre in San Diego. It opened on Broadway at the Walter Kerr Theatre November 17, 2013. The musical won four 2014 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Direction of a Musical, Book of a Musical, and Costume Design of a Musical.

Featuring John Alejandro Jeffords* (Lincoln Center: Babes in Toyland) as Monty Navarro, Rikki Carroll (Tri-M: Kinky Boots) as Phoebe, Cara Juan as Sibella (Ladyfang Band), and David Stallings* as the members of the D'Ysquith Family (SFP: The Baby Monitor). With Andra Beatty as Lady Eugenia D'Ysquith and others, Bill Brooks* as Magistrate and others (Broadway: Camelot, Brigadoon), Sierra Jimenez as Miss Barley and others, Dakotah Lopez as Chief Inspector Pinckney and others (UNM: Frankenstein), Patrick MacDonald as Tom Copley and others (SFP: The Thanksgiving Play), Karen Gruber Ryan as Miss Shingle and others (SFP: A Year With Frog and Toad).

Featuring scenic design by James W. Johnson, lighting design by Rob Siler, costume design by Erica Frank, sound design by Saibi Khalsa, props design by Jocelyn Causey, choreography by Laura Orozco Garrett, music direction by Stephen Elkins, intimacy & assistant direction by Antonio Miniño, and stage management by Robert Peatman. Rounding up the team are Daniel Thobias as the assistant costume designer, Stephanie Barton-Farcas as the dialect coach, and Casey Standridge as the assistant stage manager.

The live orchestra is conducted by Gretchen Amstutz, with Will Varner on Piano, Kevin Darrow on Oboe & English Horn, Karles McQuade on Violin, Lynette Gassner on Bass, and Jeff Sussmann on Percussion.

Tickets range from $15 - $75 (Pay-What-You-Will sliding scale pricing July 13, 14; Industry Night sliding scale pricing July 20; Rush tickets begin July 21), and can be purchased by calling 505-988-4262, visiting santafeplayhouse.org, or in-person one-hour before showtime.

Running Time: Two hours and thirty minutes including one intermission.

Suitable for Ages 11+

Santa Fe Playhouse has presented theater by and for Santa Feans for 100 years, from beloved classics to new works by local and national artists. As our city, our country, and our world changes, the Playhouse offers compelling productions that will provoke difficult conversations with compassion, while pushing theatrical forms and opening doors for artists of all backgrounds and identities. Santafeplayhouse.org

 

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