Photo Credit: George Katsekes Jr.
The Sunset Playhouse dives into hammy spoofery with its staging of Fred Carmichael’s murder mystery-comedy Any Number Can Die. Set during the late 1920s, the 1965 comedy has an early ’60s sitcom feel about it with a formal and steady comic rhythm. Though he was somewhat prolific, Carmichael’s scripts aren’t produced terribly often. The rigidity of the comedy can feel stiffly conservative.
That being said, it’s interesting seeing the Prohibition Era as reflected through a satirical lens of the ’60s as brought to the contemporary stage. Director Carol Dolphin demonstrates a firm understanding of Carmichael’s quaint sense of humor as a large ensemble assembles in a spooky, old house for the reading of a cryptic will.
Diane Kallas and Hal Erickson are reasonably cute as a couple of private detectives of advanced age on their first real case. The murders pile up and they seem to be in way over their heads in a comically bewildering plot involving hidden money and hidden motives. The two detectives are adrift in a cast of strange characters who are all brought to the stage with varying degrees of success. Some of the comedy falls flat. They might not always hit the mark individually, but they remain cohesive enough as an ensemble to keep the show entertaining. Megan Tappan is irrepressibly cheerful as the lovely, young ingenue who becomes a target when the entire estate is left to her. Maureen Murphy Chobanoff manages a few rather clever bits of perfectly timed and executed physical comedy. It’s a pity more of the show couldn’t have had more gracefully funny moments.
Stay on top of the news of the day
Subscribe to our free, daily e-newsletter to get Milwaukee's latest local news, restaurants, music, arts and entertainment and events delivered right to your inbox every weekday, plus a bonus Week in Review email on Saturdays.
Through June 17 at Furlan Auditorium, 700 Wall St., Elm Grove. For tickets, call 262-782-4430 or visit www.sunsetplayhouse.com.
