A clever but silly murder mystery focussed around an out of fashion TV medium, cleverly written, with thrilling twists and some big belly laughs. Rating
Excellent
The Churchill Theatre in Bromley hosts The Other Side of Murder, the latest addition to playwright Torben Betts’ murder trilogy. Preceded by Murder in the Dark and last year’s Murder at Midnight, this play has similarities in style and execution to its precursors but offers a unique and standalone story about a medium caught up in a murder.
Passé TV medium Peter (Rufus Hound) is finally finding himself back in the public eye after an appearance on Big Brother gets some attention from the TV powers-that-be. As he prepares for a reappearance on prime time with his own show, which is spearheaded by his driven wife Susannah (Carla Mendonça), he’s also preparing to rekindle a relationship with Jen (Beth Lilly), his estranged daughter from a previous marriage, who is due to arrive back from Australia any minute.
As if that wasn’t enough to deal with, his mistress Laura (Aisha Jawando) appears at his front door with an ultrasound image she says is of his baby, and she’s come to be with him after leaving her own abusive husband, Jason (Andy McLeod). And that’s just the first five minutes. Goodness gracious.
The setting, like that of any gentle murder mystery, is quite inviting. Designer Colin Falconer has created what feels just like a quintessential middle-class suburban house to contain the goings on. Only taking up half of the Churchill Theatre’s stage, it feels compact but too orderly to be cosy – a neat open-concept kitchen-dining-living space which is perfectly charming and well-kempt enough to look like it is ready for a bit of chaos. Clever things happen with the furniture, as you might expect in a quasi-supernatural story, and these are quite exciting.
Any good murder mystery, though, is all about the smart story. What Betts has created with The Other Side of Murder is a balanced script that sometimes feels sharp and quick-witted, and the next moment silly and excessive. In the same way, it swings from believable to larger-than-life, which gives it a nice vibe of cosy Sunday afternoon TV, but with a faster pace and a bit more ridiculousness than your typical Agatha Christie.
As in any character-driven play like this, The Other Side of Murder relies on good performances and chemistry between the cast members. Luckily, performances are mostly slick and choreographed, with well-characterised roles. Leading man Hound holds things together with comedic pathos, and Susie Blake steals moments with her endearing silliness as Miriam.
It’s no surprise that a play like this would have a twist. It is inventive, unexpected and just the right amount of ridiculous, creating a great feeling when little hints dropped right from the beginning are suddenly recalled even after leaving the theatre. In the wrong hands it could be a bit too much, so a lot of credit to good handling of Falconer’s script goes to Director Philip Franks.
A clever script is well pieced together by skilful direction, and has all the feel of a familiar murder mystery, but with added doses of ridiculousness and unexpected twists. The Other Side of Murder is a great culmination of a trilogy of murder mystery plays, which may leave you hoping it becomes a quartet.
Written by Torben Betts
Produced by Original Theatre in association with Theatr Clwyd
Directed by Philip Franks
Designed by Colin Falconer
The Other Side of Murder is playing at Churchill Theatre, Bromley, until Saturday 7 November, before continuing on tour around the country.
