MCT’s Murder Girl: Quintessential Up North Wisconsin: But Is It A Murder Mystery or A Comedy?
It will be up to you to decide! But I laughed between bouts of holding my breath.
Murder Girl has been selling out its entire run and as a result has been extended through December 7, 2025. So hint, hint, don’t dawdle! But that fact just added to my anticipation in seeing it at Milwaukee Chamber Theatre!
And what do we have here? A murder mystery or a comedy? Yes! Playwright Heidi Armbruster has provided a magnificent bit of Wisconsinana. I don’t care if that’s not a word, that’s what Armbruster has written! And with a delightful cast of characters that will seem all so familiar to those of us who celebrate our time away from work in the Up North of Wisconsin and dine in nothing but the finest local supper clubs. The one here that is the center of attention is Marty’s Supper Club, but alas Marty is no longer with us…but fondly remembered…and her twins run the place. Well sorta!
Marty’s Supper Club. Photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre
Marty’s Scenic Designer Lisa Schlenker knows the Up North supper club by heart. That quaint combination of beer signs, mounted trophies (I mean deer heads and muskies) and the local bric-a-brac that a small town bar is known for. Until we get into the action, it is hard to place Marty’s in a time frame. Much of the decor is so last century as to feel antiquey. Worn wood floors and paneling, totally past their prime bar stools, and the Formica dining table in the corner tell us exactly where we are and maybe why we are here. But then the TV and electronics are fresh from Best Buy! So are we here for the Friday Night Fish Fry or the Saturday Prime Rib? We are here for the murder mystery…ssssh…listen…can you hear the theme music from Murder She Wrote?
L to R: Carrie Hitchcock, Colleen Madden, Matt Bowdren, Bree Beelow, and Joe Lino. Photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre
And the suspense starts immediately as twins Eric and LeeAnn enter a darkened Marty’s separately each thinking that they are alone…and surprise each other with a certain fright. Matt Bowdren, returning the MCT after his appearance in A Doll’s House, is Eric. And Bowdren’s Eric, is sullen, un-trusting, depressed, and a bit jumpy. LeeAnn is portrayed by Bree Beelow as fluid, self-assured, and ready to take control whether Eric approves or not. Both of them are clearly still mourning their mother, Marty, who died in a car accident. Questions still remain about the accident and they are mourning in very different ways, but Bowdren and Beelow both present as people at wit’s end…just at different ends of their wits. Eric is coping by keeping Marty’s alive and just settling for the status quo. LeeAnn has escaped town and found another life, so to speak, but as Eric reminds her, she keeps coming back. So has she actually escaped at all? In her bio notes in the Playbill, Beelow says she hopes to KILL IT on stage as LeeAnn…and rest assured she has done just that.
Armbruster has drawn three more very intriguing and very strong characters here. All denizens of Marty’s but not blood relatives…but given the small town vibe and atmosphere around the supper club…and the way the treat each other, they might as well be.
L to R: Joe Lino, Carrie Hitchcock, Colleen Madden, and Matt Bowdren. Photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre
Director Brett Hazelton (also Executive Artistic Director fo MCT) has pulled together a cast that plays very believable as small town service employees. Let’s start with Ted. A gentleman with a bit of background issues himself, Joe Lino gives us the strong silent type, well until all heck breaks loose and then he seems to be the strong anchor in a sea of chaos…often just being the support that everyone else needs. Carrie Hitchcock assumes the ideal caricature of a small town waitress as Charlotte…with a quick imagination, willingness to blurt out her ideas and thoughts, and protective of Marty’s and the staff no matter what the daily chores of the job introduce. And her perfect foil is the Other Charlotte. A really delightful role played by American Player Theater’s Colleen Madden. What incredible fun to see Madden outside of her trusting environment and seeming to be completely enjoying herself in this dark murderous comedy. She shows that she can be very very funny,
The Charlottes! My favorite characters. Left to Right: Colleen Madden and Carrie Hitchcock. Photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre
Murder? Mayhem? Yes and there are suspicions, suppositions, conspiracy theories, secrets, and more secrets…but all will be revealed in the marvelous language woven together by Armbruster and the pliant and engaging ensemble put together by Hazelton. Murder? Well there is a missing young woman, Emily, who was a waitress at Marty’s. She may or may not have had a variety of non-supper club relationships or interactions with our other characters. And there is her distraught mother, Jen, also a Marty’s waitress, who only appears as a disembodied voice on the recurring news casts played on Marty’s TV. And there are clues and clues and plenty of opportunities to tumble down a rabbit hole (or two). But the answers to all of this are going to be left between you and Armbruster!
Bree Beelow and Matt Bowdren, Photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre
Run time: approximately 90 minutes, no intermission
Can you bring your family? Well, you betcha! We’d be delighted to welcome your whole crew for this homegrown holiday whodunnit! MURDER GIRL does include some strong language, as well as references to drinking, violence, and death. If this were a movie, we’d call it PG-13.
L to R: Matt Bowdren, Bree Beelow, and Carrie Hitchcock. Photo by Michael Brosilow and courtesy of the Milwaukee Chamber Theatre
One Reply to “MCT’s Murder Girl: Quintessential Up North Wisconsin: But Is It A Murder Mystery or A Comedy?”
One Reply to “MCT’s Murder Girl: Quintessential Up North Wisconsin: But Is It A Murder Mystery or A Comedy?”