The Mystery of Edwin Drood at Parker Theatre

Last night I saw the absolutely hilarious musical The Mystery of Edwin Drood at Parker Theatre and I had so much fun! I can't remember the last time I laughed out loud so much! This show features a play-within-a-play as a Victorian acting troupe performs The Mystery of Edwin Drood by Charles Dickens at the Music Hall Royale. Will Cartwright (Tyler Oliphant) is the Chairman, who acts as a narrator and master of ceremonies for the show, but he is also called upon to perform the role of Mayor Sapsea in the middle of the show with a script in hand. Leading man Clive Padget (Spencer Hohl) is John Jasper, ingenue Deidre Peregrine (Lisa Zimmerman) is Rosa Bud, London's most famous male impersonator Alice Nutting (Jasmine Hohl) is guest starring as Edwin Drood, the grand dame of the theatre Angela Prysock (Mary Parker Williams) is Princess Puffer, character actors Victor Grinstead (Brandan Ngo) and Janet Conover (Janzell Tutor) are Neville and Helena Landless, respectively, veteran Cedric Moncrieffe (Curt Jensen) is the Rev. Crisparkle, vaudeville duo Nick Cricker, Sr. (John-Tyrus Williams) and Nick Cricker, Jr. (Caleb Ceran) are Durdles and his Deputy, respectively, and bit player Phillip Bax (Jonathan McBride) is Bazzard (although he yearns for a bigger part and is eventually allowed to sing his original song "Never the Luck" as consolation). With lots of amusing commentary to the audience (some of which is ad-libbed), the Chairman introduces the characters as they appear and the narrative establishes that Jasper, Edwin, and Neville are all rivals for Rosa's affections, that Rosa is dismayed by Jasper's advances, that Helena will do whatever it takes to protect her brother, that the Princess Puffer has an unknown connection to one of the characters, and that the Rev. Crisparkle was once in love with Rosa's mother. After Edwin Drood disappears by the river, the Chairman reveals that Charles Dickens died when he got to this point in his novel and, since no one knows the resolution to the story, it is up to the audience to decide who the murderer is by voting. The show ends when the chosen murderer confesses to the crime! I really enjoyed the melodramatic element to the show, as if the audience is really watching a musical revue during the Victorian era, and I especially loved Spencer Hohl's over the top performance as an opium addicted Jekyll-and-Hyde like character (his facial expressions and exaggerated tics are hilarious) and Tyler Oliphant's perfectly delivered wisecracks and double entendres. I was also really impressed with Williams (the director of the show) because she had to step into the role of Princess Puffer at the last minute after the original actress broke her wrist and she hams it up spectacularly! The songs have a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta feel to them and my favorites are "Both Sides of the Coin" by Sapsea and Jasper, because it is performed faster and faster with energetic choreography, "A Man Could Go Quite Mad" by Jasper, because the physicality of this number is incredibly entertaining, and "Moonfall" by Rosa with accompaniment by Jasper, because it is a beautiful song with the added comedy of Jasper's love-struck responses to it. The set resembles an old fashioned music hall with floodlights and stylized backdrops and the costumes are beautiful. What makes this show so much fun is all of the audience participation beginning before the show even begins with the actors of the Music Hall Royale mingling with the audience and lobbying for their character to be chosen as the murderer. The audience is also encouraged to respond to certain elements of the show, such as the waving of hands when the name Edwin Drood is spoken, and, of course, the audience votes for the murderer as the characters stand on stage holding numbers. My audience voted for Rosa Bud but this is not a spoiler because every performance will be different (which makes me want to see it again!). I cannot recommend this show enough! It runs at Parker Theatre on Fridays and Saturdays through October 28 (go here for tickets).