Joe Kinosian and Ian Lowe to Star in The Old Globe's MURDER FOR TWO; Cast & Creative Team Set!

The Old Globe today announced the full cast and creative team for Murder for Two, with book and music by Joe Kinosian (pictured, left) and book and lyrics by Kellen Blair. Globe veteran Scott Schwartz (A Room with a View at the Globe, The Hunchback of Notre Dame at La Jolla Playhouse) returns to direct Blair and Kinosian's Off Broadway hit, a vaudevillian mystery musical with an energetic two-man cast. Murder for Two will run January 24 - March 1 on the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the Old Globe Theatre, part of the Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center.

Preview performances run January 24 - 28. Opening night is Thursday, January 29 at 8:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE, or by visiting the Box Office at 1363 Old Globe Way in Balboa Park. Single tickets are on sale to the general public now.

Great American novelist Arthur Whitney has been murdered at his own birthday party, and his killer could be any one of the guests. But this is no ordinary murder mystery. The entire world of this hilarious musical is brought to life by two incredible performers: one plays the detective, the other plays all 10 suspects, and both play the piano! Murder for Two is an irrepressibly wacky tour-de-force musical that NewYork1 dubbed "a must-see 90-minute jolt of caffeinated creativity!"

The acting company includes Joe Kinosian as The Suspects. Kinosian is the co-recipient (with Kellen Blair) of Chicago's Joseph Jefferson Award, recognizing Murder for Two as Best New Work - Musical or Review following its record-breaking run at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. He was also nominated for Best Actor in a Principal Role as The Suspects. Ian Lowe reprises the role of Marcus following a highly successful Off Broadway run in the role at New World Stages. He was also seen in Nikolai and the Others at Lincoln Center Theater. Kyle Branzel and Brandon Lambert serve as the understudies for The Suspects and Marcus, respectively.

The creative team includes Wendy Seyb (Choreographer), Beowulf Boritt (Scenic Design), Andrea Lauer (Costume Design), Jason Lyons (Lighting Design), Jill BC Du Boff (Sound Design), David Caldwell (Music Director), J. Scott Lapp (Assistant Director), Calleri Casting (Casting), Kat West (Production Stage Manager), and Production Core (Production Supervisor).

"Murder for Two is theatre at its most fun," said Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. "Silly, energetic, hilarious, and virtuosic, it is sure to kick off the Globe's celebration of its 80th year and Balboa Park's centennial in high style, and certain to put big smiles on lots and lots of faces. Joe Kinosian, Kellen Blair, and Scott Schwartz have concocted a real treat, and it's a very special thrill that Kinosian will be on our stage leading the shenanigans. I look forward to sharing a great evening of laughter with San Diego audiences."

Joe Kinosian is the co-recipient of Chicago's Joseph Jefferson Award recognizing Murder for Two as Best New Work -- Musical or Review, following its record-breaking run at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, and he was also nominated for Best Actor in a Principal Role as The Suspects. Murder for Two had its Off Broadway premiere at Second Stage Theatre Uptown, going on to a year-long run at New World Stages. Kinosian's work with Kellen Blair has been showcased at The Kennedy Center, York Theatre Company, and at the Theatre World Awards. Kinosian received the ASCAP Foundation Mary Rodgers/Lorenz Hart Award and the Jerry Harrington Award from the BMI Lehman Engel Musical Theatre Workshop. He also appeared in Dirty Blonde with Emily Skinner (Hangar Theatre) and the New York City premiere of Dear Edwina Off Broadway.

Kellen Blair is the Drama Desk Award-nominated co-creator of Murder for Two, which appeared Off Broadway at Second Stage Theatre and New World Stages following its world premiere at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. Blair and co-writer Joe Kinosian are the recipients of the 2011 Joseph Jefferson Award for Best New Work - Musical or Review and the 2013 ASCAP Foundation Mary Rodgers/Lorenz Hart Award. Their work has been showcased Off Broadway, at The Kennedy Center, and in theatres across the country. Blair is developing a new musical farce with Kinosian titled The More Things Change. He is also working with Broadway composer Larry Grossman on a new show called Scrooge in Love.

Globe veteran Scott Schwartz directed Murder for Two Off Broadway at New World Stages and Second Stage Theatre Uptown. At the Old Globe, he directed Lost in Yonkers, Brighton Beach Memoirs, Broadway Bound, Golda's Balcony, and A Room with a View. On Broadway, he directed Golda's Balcony and Jane Eyre (co-directed with John Caird). His other Off Broadway work includes Bat Boy: The Musical (Lucille Lortel and Outer Critics Circle Awards, Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical; Drama Desk Award nomination, Outstanding Director of a Musical), tick, tick... BOOM! (Outer Critics Circle, Outstanding Off-Broadway Musical; Drama Desk nomination, Outstanding Director of a Musical), ROOMS: a rock romance, The Foreigner starring Matthew Broderick (Roundabout Theatre Company), Kafka's The Castle (Outer Critics Circle nomination, Outstanding Director of a Play), and No Way to Treat a Lady. He also directed Golda's Balcony on tour, in London, in Los Angeles at the Wadsworth Theatre, and in San Francisco at American Conservatory Theater. He directed the world premiere of Séance on a Wet Afternoon at Opera Santa Barbara and subsequently at New York City Opera. Schwartz's other recent credits include the U.S. premiere of The Hunchback of Notre Dame (La Jolla Playhouse), the world premiere of Secondhand Lions (The 5th Avenue Theatre), the world premiere of Theresa Rebeck's What We're Up Against (Alley Theatre), Arsenic and Old Lace starring Tovah Feldshuh and Betty Buckley (Dallas Theater Center), and a re-envisioning of Seven Brides for Seven Brothers (Paper Mill Playhouse, Theatre Under The Stars, Theatre on the Square, and North Shore Music Theatre; 2008 IRNE Award, Outstanding Director of a Musical). He is the Artistic Director of Bay Street Theatre in Sag Harbor, New York.

The world premiere of Murder for Two was presented on May 12, 2011 at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. The New York premiere was produced by the Second Stage Theatre, New York, 2013. The Murder for Two tour team includes Snug Harbor Productions (General Management), AWA Partners (Exclusive Tour Direction), Jayson Raitt, Barbara Whitman, Steven Chaikelson, Second Stage Theatre, Latitude Link, Omneity Entertainment/Richard G. Weinberg, Paula Marie Black, Paula Kaminsky Davis, Pittsburgh CLO, and Chicago Shakespeare Theater (Producers), and Tom Casserly (Associate Producer).

TICKETS to Murder for Two are available as part of a Season Package, which offer substantial savings with special subscriber benefits. Subscription prices for the 2014-2015 Season range from $68 to $463. Subscription packages may be purchased online at www.TheOldGlobe.org, by phone at (619) 23-GLOBE or by visiting the Box Office at 1363 Old Globe Way in Balboa Park. Single tickets on sale now, starting at $29. Performances begin on January 24 and continue through March 1. Performance times: Previews: Saturday, January 24 at 8:00 p.m., Sunday, January 25 at 7:00 p.m., Tuesday, January 27 at 7:00 p.m., and Wednesday, January 28 at 7:00 p.m. Opening night is Thursday, January 29 at 8:00 p.m. Regular Performances: Tuesday and Wednesday evenings at 7:00 p.m., Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings at 8:00 p.m., Saturday and Sunday matinees at 2:00 p.m. and Sunday evenings at 7:00 p.m. There will a Wednesday matinee performance on February 18 at 2:00 p.m. and no matinee performance on Saturday, February 21. The evening performance on Wednesday, February 18 will begin at 8:00 p.m. Discounts are available for full-time students, patrons 29 years of age and under, seniors, and groups of 10 or more.

Additional events taking place during the run of Murder for Two include:

INSIGHTS SEMINAR: Monday, January 26 at 7:00 p.m.

The seminar series features a panel selected from the current show. Reception at 6:30 p.m. FREE

POST-SHOW FORUMS: Tuesdays, February 3 and February 10, and Wednesday, February 18

Discuss the play with members of the cast and crew following the performance. FREE

SUBJECT MATTERS: Saturday, February 14

Following the 2:00 p.m. performance, explore the ideas and issues raised by the production through brief, illuminating post-show discussions with local experts. FREE

The Old Globe is located in San Diego's Balboa Park at 1363 Old Globe Way. There are numerous free parking lots available throughout the park. Guests may also be dropped off in front of the Mingei International Museum. The Balboa Park valet is also available during performances ($12), located in front of the Japanese Friendship Garden. For additional parking information visit www.BalboaPark.org. For directions and up-to-date information, please visit www.TheOldGlobe.org/Directions. To look up online or GPS directions to The Old Globe, please do not use the Delivery Address above. There is only a 10-minute zone at that physical address. For GPS users, click here for the map coordinates, and here for written directions to The Old Globe and nearby parking in Balboa Park.

The Tony Award-winning Old Globe, celebrating its 80th Anniversary in 2015, is one of the country's leading professional regional theatres and has stood as San Diego's flagship arts institution. Under the leadership of Artistic Director Barry Edelstein and Managing Director Michael G. Murphy, The Old Globe produces a year-round season of 14 productions of classic, contemporary, and new works on its three Balboa Park stages: the Donald and Darlene Shiley Stage in the 600-seat Old Globe Theatre and the 250-seat Sheryl and Harvey White Theatre, both part of The Old Globe's Conrad Prebys Theatre Center, and the 605-seat outdoor Lowell Davies Festival Theatre, home of its internationally renowned Shakespeare Festival. More than 250,000 people attend Globe productions annually and participate in the theatre's education and community programs. Numerous world premieres such as 2014 Tony Award winner for Best Musical, A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, A Catered Affair, and the annual holiday musical Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas! have been developed at The Old Globe and have gone on to enjoy highly successful runs on Broadway and at regional theatres across the country.

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