MANSFIELD – Murder, betrayal, sex and laughter will grace the Second Stage at the Mansfield Playhouse this weekend with “It’s Only Murder.”
The play tells the story of a mild-mannered accountant Jerome, who finds out his wife, Francine, has purchased a gun. Then he finds out from his neighbor, Janice, that her husband is having an affair with Francine.
According to director Mark Sebastian Jordan, hilarity then ensues.
“It’s a bawdy show and very boisterous,” Jordan said. “And the characters are very sharply drawn, yet they’re all playing it very real. There are parts that are uproariously funny, but to the characters it’s all life or death.”
The show has a small cast of only four characters, played by local actors Scott Stoops, Beau Roberts, Carla Eighinger and Chevy Troxell Bond. For Stoops, this is his first experience acting on the smaller Second Stage at the Playhouse.
“I like smaller casts, I think you get time to build relationships with people and the better your relationships offstage, the better they are onstage,” Stoops said. “And I like where I can really interact with the audience and feel the energy coming off them.”
Jordan noted there is an element of audience interaction with “It’s Only Murder” as it intentionally breaks the “fourth wall.” For his first time directing on the Second Stage, Jordan also enjoys the energy of the space.
“I love the intimacy of the space; this room is very compact and allows for a small audience all squeezed together,” he said. “When you have people together like that, laughter is contagious. It’s a very fun room to play.”
The smaller space on the stage itself also presents a challenge to the four actors, requiring a bit of creativity on a minimal set.
“It really relies on the actors to set the place of where you’re at,” Stoops said. “So not only are you thinking about your character, you have to make this very sparse environment be believable for whatever the scene is.”
“What they’re doing with the acting and the storytelling is so convincing, you’re sucked right into it,” Jordan added.
This script of “It’s Only Murder” contains adult subject matter, certain to result in a sizzling good time. And although it has comedic moments, the show is definitely not a farce.
“There is a darkness to it, it’s not the cheesy ‘I’m so funny’ sort of comedy,” Jordan said. “Instead it’s a pretty darkly aggressive sort of comedy.”
“It’s Only Murder” opens Friday, Nov. 11 at 8 p.m. on the Mansfield Playhouse Second Stage. Additional shows include Saturday, Nov. 12; Friday, Nov. 18; and Saturday, Nov. 19 all starting at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10 apiece.
“If you like mystery-type shows there are a lot of twists and turns in this I don’t think the audience is going to expect,” said Beau Roberts. “And if they’re into comedy they’re definitely going to like this because it’s really funny.
“So much so that I have yet to make it through a rehearsal without breaking character.”
