Cast Set For DIAL M FOR MURDER at Pittsburgh Public Theater

Pittsburgh Public Theater this fall launches its 50th anniversary season with suspense and surprise in the thriller that inspired the Hitchcock classic, "Dial M for Murder", which makes its regional premiere Sept. 11-29 at the O'Reilly Theater in Downtown. Tony nominee Céline Rosenthal directs the new adaptation from The Old Globe's Jeffrey Hatcher, and today The Public announced the full cast and creative team from Pittsburgh and beyond.

"Hatcher's funny, muscular adaptation marries Hitchcock's genius with director Céline Rosenthal's talent for elegant storytelling," Pittsburgh Public Theater Artistic Director Marya Sea Kaminski said. "At The Public we excel at staging smart, relevant productions of iconic stories, and this gorgeous production of 'Dial M for Murder' will be no exception."

"Dial M for Murder," for audiences lucky enough to be encountering the thrilling murder mystery for the first time, tells the 1950s London story of Margot Wendice (Brooke Turner) and her husband Tony (Josh Innerst), who, upon discovering his wealthy wife's torrid affair with a handsome American mystery writer, entwines his old college pal Lesgate (Michael Patrick Trimm) in a plot to have her murdered and acquire her sizable inheritance. Tony, a retired tennis pro in the original, sees his plan go awry and consequences close in as he frantically attempts to evade the story's plot - and Inspector Hubbard (Ken Bolden).

Hatcher's adaptation swaps Tony's tennis career for a life as a failed-writer-turned-literary publishing agent, and Margot's love interest for Maxine Hadley (Shannon Williams), a successful mystery writer professionally represented by Tony's publishing house - adding layers to the animosity Tony has for his wife's lover and danger to the consequences of Margot and Maxine's queer trysts. Carolyn Jerz joins the cast as production understudy.

"The modernized story of Margot saving herself strikes me every time," Turner said. "That update changes the entire story, from one of a man's folly to one of a woman's strength, and that is a story I want to tell."

Critics raved over Rosenthal's recent direction of the adaptation at Asolo Repertory Theatre in Sarasota, Florida, and Pittsburgh Public Theater's production features members of the same stunning creative team, including Set Designer Antonio Ferron, Costume Designer Tracy Dorman, and Fight Director Mark Rose. Pittsburgh talent, including The Public's Resident Artist Jose Perez IV as intimacy director, Annmarie Duggan of the crowd favorite "A Tell-Tale Heart" as lighting designer, Kathy Mathews as hair and wig designer, and Nancy McNulty McGeever as dialect coach, joins this staging to play to the strengths of the O'Reilly Theater's thrust stage. The Public also brings other national talent to Pittsburgh with this production, including the San Diego-based sound designer Stewart Blackwood, who teaches at Carnegie Mellon University and is a prolific award-winning audiobook narrator and will bring dark mystery to the sounds of "Dial M for Murder."

"The design is definitely harkening back to the film and the glamour of it all, but it feels like noir," Pittsburgh Public Theater Casting and Literary Director Brian Pope said. "It really sets the stage for what we learn these characters are capable of."

The show's director is a queer theater leader of their own and an active member of the Ring of Keys, an LGBTQ+ musical theater network that focuses its work on creative and networking opportunities for artists who self-identify as queer women, transgender, and gender-nonconforming artists. Rosenthal's career as a Tony Award-nominated producer followed other work as an educator and New York City paramedic - influences Rosenthal discussed with Pittsburgh Public Theater Artistic Director Marya Sea Kaminski and Managing Director Shaunda McDill in a recent podcast episode.

"Uncovering queer history is a personal passion of mine, and especially given that we lost an entire generation of elders in the late '80s and '90s through the AIDS epidemic, there's so much history that just hasn't been passed down to us as younger queers," Rosenthal said. "We need to preserve it, to do that research and to look back at what lesbian culture was like in the 1950s, to remember that and recall that. It's really exciting to able to sprinkle it in this production and present it on stage."

Tickets to "Dial M for Murder" are on sale now at PPT.org/Dial or by calling the Box Office at 412.316.1600 and start at $37. The Public also offers numerous ways to engage more deeply with the theater and enhance your theatergoing experience, available during select performances all season long.

Join Pittsburgh Public Theater Wednesday, Sept. 11, at 5:30 p.m., for the recurring Wine Wednesday series. Be among the first to see each production at the first preview performance and add an exclusive wine tasting in partnership with Dreadnaught Wines for just $15 to your ticket purchase.

The Public brings more libations centerstage Friday, Sept. 13, at 6 p.m., for Theater on Tap, The Public's co-curated beer and spirits tasting series with Barrel & Flow's Day Bracey, bringing the best of Black and local-owned drinks right to the O'Reilly Theater with a just $15 ticket add-on. Want to dive deeper into the show with the folks who make the art possible? Spend your afternoon with the cast of Dial M for Murder after the matinee performance on Saturday, Sept. 21, for our Cast Q+A series.

Pittsburgh Public Theater this season will reduce barriers for parents and families in partnership with Jovie childcare services by offering a secure and engaging environment for children of all ages with Sitter Sundays. Sitter Sundays is offered during the second Sunday matinee of each production and is limited to six children per show. Jovie's trusted professionals will be available from 12:30 - 5 p.m. on show days, allowing parents time to squeeze in a pre-show date or stroll around the Cultural District. Sitter Sundays is made possible by the generous support of the McKinney Charitable Foundation.

To find more details and register for just $20 per child, visit PPT.org/Sitter. Reservations must be made at least one week in advance.

Pittsburgh Public Theater is committed to its performances being accessible for all audiences, and offers an ASL interpretation series, a Live Audio Description series, closed captioning at most performances, Braille and large-print programs, and more. For more information about The Public's accessibility initiatives, visit PPT.org/Accessibility. The Public also offers student tickets for $17.50 using the promo code HOTTIX at checkout (valid with ID at box office) and a limited number of free tickets in a first-come first-served Theater for All model.

This year's Theater for All program is The Public's second offering this transformational ticketing initiative and is generously supported by the Audrey Hillman Fisher Foundation. For more information about Theater for All and to learn how to reserve your tickets, visit PPT.org/TFA or follow Pittsburgh Public Theater on social media.

Before Rear Window and Psycho, master of suspense Alfred Hitchcock brought Dial M for Murder to the silver screen and altered the landscape of the thriller genre. On a dark and rainy night, Tony's jealousy over his wife Margot's illicit affair takes a sinister turn. As Tony, Margot, her lover, and a figure from his past weave an intricate web of deception, the tension rises, and the consequences of suspicion and desire become deadly. The call is coming from inside The O'Reilly in this new version of the classic murder mystery, where secrets, lies, and the thirst for revenge collide.

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