The Pittsburgh Tatler: What makes a thriller thrilling?
In the case of material like Dial M for Murder, it’s unlikely to be the plot: for a long time Hitchcock’s film version (adapted from Frederick Knott’s 1952 stage play) aired fairly regularly on television, regularly enough that I suspect you could say to just about anyone over the age of forty that “it’s the one with the scissors” and they’d nod in recognition.
4 comments:
I was fortunate enough to go see Dial M for Murder last week at the Public with a friend of mine. We had a blast. I had heard of the tv show, but had never seen it so I was intrigued by the murder mystery. It was the most thrilling 2 hours I have been through for a murder mystery play in a while. The characters all fed off each other well and the gender bending with Margot and Maxine added for an interesting twist, that even though it was set in 1950s London made it feel like it was contemporary and more intriguing for modern day audiences. I was thrilled to see many different CMU professors, and students working on this production and I knew to specifically look out for Stewart’s sound design throughout the piece. It was so subtle, yet I noticed it every time and every time it added to the suspense of the moment. I came away from this show with a newfound appreciation for murder mystery plays.
I think it’s always important to not just pay attention to large Broadway productions but also the ones that are going on around you locally. Supporting local theatre and regional theatre fosters a stronger theatre community as a whole. Dial M for Murder has been around for a long time, and while I have never seen it, I have heard the name many times. What I like about the show that is being staged in Pittsburgh are the reworkings of an old story to have modern commentary and meaning. When doing this with any show, understanding the range in which one can work before it turns into rewriting the playwrights original work is vital. While keeping the base elements, adding new features such as a female love interest changes the way the performance is received. This can be done very well to create new and impactful meaning from a well known show such as Dial M for Murder.
I was drawn to this article because during a class discussion this week, my professor had raved about this production. After reading this article, I am even more excited by the idea. I love a good gender swap– especially when it highlights the women– and this sounds like it was done very well. The thing that I love most about this article is the fact that it focuses not only on the performers and set design– as most usually do– but that it dives into the sound design. This is the first thing that TJ mentioned when telling us about his experience seeing this production. As an aspiring sound designer myself, this is so inspiring to read. It is even more amazing that the sound designer, Stewart Blackwood, is a professor here at CMU School of Drama! I love that the staff teaching us are actively engaged (and excelling in!) in the world of theatre. I am looking forward to learning from him in the future and learning and becoming something of my own one day.
After reading this article I can't wait to see the performance for myself. From what I can see of the pictures the set is a spectacularly immersive scene adding to the thrilling atmosphere of the show. This and the deeply intense sound design is what makes the show great. This goes to show how important sound is in creating a setting and bringing in feelings of fear and suspense. The modifications made by director Hatcher provides a more up to date and relevant viewing experience by including a female lover for the character of Margot. It proves that even simple changes made to a production can bring a completely different, in this case better, subtext to the entire show. I also appreciate the modernization of themes without the modernization of setting, this helps to keep the play true to its origins without forgetting to account for todays social climate.
Post a Comment