The Old Globe Announces Second Extension For Agatha Christie's MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS

The Old Globe has announced that its hit production of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express, which is adapted for the stage by Tony Award–nominated playwright Ken Ludwig (Broadway's Lend Me a Tenor, Crazy for You) and directed by Peter Amster (Asolo Repertory Theatre's Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express, Indiana Repertory Theatre's Sense and Sensibility), has received a second extension week due to popular demand. The crowd-pleaser, which opened last week, will play through Oct. 20, 2024, on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the Old Globe Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center in San Diego's Balboa Park. Tickets for the second week extension are now on sale at www.TheOldGlobe.org.

Get ready for a glamorous and enthralling journey in this adaptation of Agatha Christie's masterpiece. On a train traveling through Europe, a wealthy American tycoon is found dead in his compartment, the door locked from the inside. Enter world-famous detective Hercule Poirot, who must navigate a train full of suspects and solve the murder before the killer strikes again. With humor and romance, audiences will experience a thrill ride in a spectacular production whose gorgeous designs and innovative staging are a true knockout.

“Ken Ludwig is a great friend of The Old Globe, and we're thrilled to welcome him back with his absolutely amazing new adaptation of one of the greatest detective stories there is,” said Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. “Murder on the Orient Express is Agatha Christie's masterpiece, and in Ludwig's hands it delivers fresh jolts of excitement, suspense, and surprise.” Edelstein added, “Peter Amster's production puts a train onstage with uncommon invention and breathtaking imagery, and the cast is top-shelf. Murder on the Orient Express is a simply spectacular evening of theatre: entertaining, fun, and exciting. I'm delighted to bring it to San Diego.”

The cast for Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express includes Sam Ashdown (Lamb's Players Theatre'sJane, People's Light's Sense and Sensibility) as Colonel Arbuthnot; Rajesh Bose (Broadway's Life of Pi, Off Broadway's Pygmalion) as Michel and Marcel; David Breitbarth (Asolo Repertory Theatre's Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express, Rhinoceros) as Monsieur Bouc; Karole Foreman (Pasadena Playhouse's Jelly's Last Jam, Cygnet Theatre's Lady Day at Emerson's Bar & Grill) as Princess Dragomiroff; Marquis D. Gibson (Broadway's Fat Ham, Studio Theatre's Wig Out) as Hector MacQueen; Maya Gimbel (Kids on Stage Productions's Peter Pan, Frozen) as Daisy Armstrong; Mylinda Hull (Broadway's Mr. Saturday Night, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) as Helen Hubbard; Ariella Kvashny (The Old Globe's Destiny of Desire, Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas!) as Countess Andrenyi; Helen Joo Lee (Goodman Theatre's Penelopiad, Asolo Repertory Theatre's Agatha Christie'sMurder on the Orient Express) as Mary Debenham; Giancarlo Lugo (La Jolla Playhouse's POP Tour of Abeba in the Tall Grass, San Diego Musical Theatre's Urinetown the Musical) as Ensemble; Sophia Oberg (The Old Globe's The Age of Innocence, San Diego JFest's Hereville) as Greta Ohlsson; Matthew Patrick Quinn (National Tours of Hadestown, Finding Neverland) as Samuel Ratchett; Larissa Ryan (Patchwork Theatre's Crimes of the Heart, The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds) as Ensemble; Andrew Sellon (Asolo Repertory Theatre's The Grapes of Wrath, The Curtain Theatre's Romeo and Juliet) as Hercule Poirot; Addison Smyres (San Diego Opera's Madama Butterfly, Kids on Stage Productions' Peter Pan) as Daisy Armstrong; Maya Sofia (OnStage Playhouse's Star of Ocotillo, San Diego Musical Theatre's Rent) as Ensemble; and Samuel Young (Blindspot Collective's Kagitingan, Scripps Ranch Theatre's Return Engagements) as Ensemble. 

Understudies for Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express include Alyssa Anne Austin for Mary Debenham and Ensemble; Christine Hewitt for Princess Dragomiroff and Helen Hubbard; Giancarlo Lugo for Hector MacQueen; Larissa Ryan for Greta Ohlsson; Maya Sofia for Countess Andrenyi; Ben Williams for Colonel Arbuthnot and Samuel Ratchett; Eddie Yaroch for Hercule Poirot and Monsieur Bouc; and Samuel Young for Michel and Marcel.

Also, joining Ludwig and Amster as part of the creative team for the Globe's production of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express are Paul Tate DePoo III (Scenic Design), Tracy Dorman (Costume Design), JAX Messenger (Lighting Design), Matthew Parker (Sound Design), Greg Emetaz (Projection Design), Gregg Coffin (Composer), Emmelyn Thayer (Dialect Coach), Tara Rubin Casting/Claire Burke, CSA (Casting), and Anjee Nero(Production Stage Manager).

This production of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express originally appeared at Asolo Repertory Theatre in January 2020.

Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express will play on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the Old Globe Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center. The production received a second extension and will now play through October 20, 2024. Ticket prices start at $34 and are available online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE (234-5623), and in person at The Old Globe's Box Office in Balboa Park (1363 Old Globe Way). A Post-Show Forum event will be held on Wednesday, October 2 (evening performance). The Open-Caption Performance is scheduled for Saturday, October 5 (matinee performance). This production includes mild language and violence. Visit www.TheOldGlobe.org for a full schedule and additional information.

An opening night post-show receptions for the cast and donors will be held in Hattox Hall, located in the Karen and Donald Cohn Education Center, part of the Conrad Prebys Theatre Center.

The Tony Award–winning The Old Globe is one of the country's leading professional nonprofit regional theatres. Now in its 90th year, the Globe is San Diego's flagship performing arts institution, and it serves a vibrant community by creating theatre that lives beyond the stage. Under the leadership of Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein and Audrey S. Geisel Managing Director Timothy J. Shields, The Old Globe produces a year-round season of 16 productions of classic, contemporary, and new works on its three Balboa Park stages, including its internationally renowned Shakespeare Festival. More than 250,000 people annually attend Globe productions and participate in the theatre's artistic and arts engagement programs. Its nationally prominent Arts Engagement Department provides an array of participatory programs that make theatre matter to more people in neighborhoods throughout the region. Humanities programs at the Globe and around the city broaden the community's understanding of theatre art in all its forms. The Globe also boasts a range of new play development programs with professional and community-based writers, as well as the renowned The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program. Numerous world premieres—such as 2014 Tony Award winner for Best Musical A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, Bright Star, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and Dr. Seuss's How the Grinch Stole Christmas!—have been developed at The Old Globe and have gone on to highly successful runs on Broadway and at regional theatres across the country.

Photo Credit: Jim Cox

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