Write Me a Murder: Director's Note

I have this reputation of only doing murder mysteries, but when you look at my back catalogue, I’ve only done four.  The last one was Dial M for Murder (which coincidentally was also written by Frederick Knott), and that was in 2012! While this may be an unearned reputation, it’s not an unfair one.   Because, truth be told, I always want to do a murder mystery. I love them.  Challenge me to a Columbo trivia contest; you lose every time.  Think you’ve read more Murder, She Wrote books than me?  You haven’t.

So here we are again. Murder is in the air. Now, I love a traditional drawing room mystery.  You’ve got your eccentric cast of characters with a devious murderer tossed in, you’ve got your brilliant detective, and they all end up in a room where our hero drops some knowledge on us.  Case closed, right?  Good times.  But Frederick Knott will have none of that.  He lulls you into a smug feeling that you’ve figured it out. You can see it coming a mile away.  But can you? Now you’re not so sure. Wait, that wasn’t supposed to happen. Then you’re going down a new path.  The road forks and you find an unexpected way forward.  Now you see it, but just as it comes into focus, the curtains swing closed.  Frederick Knott gets us again.

You know what, maybe I’ll just lean in to it.  Seven years is too long between murder mysteries.      -NG

Press Release: Write Me a Murder

The Valley Theatre returns with a staging of Frederick Knott’s twisty mystery Write Me a Murder directed by Nic Gunning.  Performances are set for Saturday, October 27, at 7pm and Sunday, October 28, at 2pm in the Nancy Howe Auditorium of the David A. Howe Public Library.

Frederick Knott, the author of the Hitchcock classic Dial M for Murder and the thrilling Wait Until Dark, was adept at taking the audience for an unexpected ride. In Write Me a Murder, the death of the Rodingham patriarch stirs conflict between two estranged brothers, one a playboy (Jeff Babbitt) and the other a successful author (Stephen VanValkenburg) called home by the family doctor (Alison Reusser). Sensing discord, an opportunistic businessman (Christopher Tetta) with designs on the family estate makes the Rodinghams an offer they can’t refuse. However, things become complicated when a story written by the younger Rodingham and the businessman’s wife (Joanna Bates) plants the seed for the perfect murder. If the would-be killer puts the story to practical use, they put everything at risk and will need to make sure they stay one step ahead of the cops (Christopher Winkens and Hannah Mills Woolsey) at all times. So, the question becomes… is there such a thing as the perfect crime?

Find out on Saturday, October 26, at 7pm and Sunday, October 27, at 2pm in the Nancy Howe Auditorium of the David A. Howe Public Library (155 N. Main Street, Wellsville, NY).  The performances are sponsored by the Friends of the Library and will be presented free of charge.

Joanna Bates sat down for an interview on the All the Books Show to discuss her experience playing Julie Sturrock.  Find it here: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/off-the-books-write-me-a-murder

Book Review: Batman Nightwalker: The Graphic Novel

Batman Nightwalker: The Graphic Novel
*****

Thanks to my peeps at NetGallery for giving me a sneak peek.

Young Bruce Wayne hits 18 and suddenly he's a billionaire and everybody wants to piece.  While trying to navigate that he also gets pulled in to a mystery with an enigmatic lady and doesn't know who he can trust.
I haven't read the book this was based on, but I thought this story was great.  The art looks cool and they actually manage to pull of the whole superhero-before-he's-a-superhero story.  I've read enough of those to know that's not easy. Seems most fall into one of two pits.:  they either lean to hard and everything becomes a "get it? GET IT?!" moment or they go so far in the other director that the characters become unrecognizable.  I'm impressed with the authors ability to lead you along a familiar path while making everything new.  Well done.