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“A Gentleman’s Guide to Love & Murder” tells the story of Monty, an heir to a family fortune who sets out to jump the line of succession by – you guessed it – eliminating the eight relatives (all played by one fearless man) who stand in his way.
It is modestly fair to say that the D’ysquith family nor Highhurst will never be the same after the Ninth Duke in line to the throne is in jail writing his memoirs about disproportionately reducing the competition one mysterious death at a time. Lord Montague “Monty” D’ysquith Nevarro (Kevin Massey), after a visit from Marietta Shingle, a friend of his recently departed mother, has been given a new lease on life when he realizes there is a possibility that he could mend a relationship with the prominent family his mother was previously outcast from. The telling of the story begins with the admittance by Monty that he may have done a few compromising deeds in order to improve his chances for love and a position of royalty.
As the story develops, Monty meets with his love interest, Sibella Hallward, who is the object of another man’s affection and he tries to impress her by telling her the story of his likelihood to have a great position in life if only she would stick by him and see it through. Unconvinced, she gets engaged to and marries the other guy while still hoping to maintain Monty’s interest just in case it proves to be true. As Monty meets and eliminates each successor to the line of the throne, he can taste the sweetness of success while reveling in the ease with which he has been able to reduce the competition. In an odd twist of fate, he falls for another woman who is technically related to him, yet they conveniently disregard the facts in order to satisfy each other’s thirst for companionship. As they journey together to reach Monty’s personal goal, doors start to open preparing the way for a secure future, until of course, Monty’s luck runs out.
Director Darko Tresnjak has done a superb and amazing job of working with the actors and the entire stage crew to develop incredible settings, backdrops and improvisations that allow the audience to feel the physical effects of Monty’s transgressions. From the beginning to the end, there was never a dull moment and not a detail was missed from characterizations to props in order to pull together this award-winning presentation that is one of the best in its class. Having witnessed this myself, it is totally understandable that this production has received four Tony awards out of ten nominations for Best Musical, Direction of a Musical, Book of a Musical and Best Costume Design. The AT&T Performing arts Center should be commended for having the foresight to include this selection for the citizens of the metroplex to have a worthwhile theatrical experience that is full of humor and excitement!
Now performing at the Winspear Opera House August 16 – 28
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBwwEikwBz8
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