REVIEW: The Other Side of Murder
By Paul Bromley, volunteer theatre reviewer
The opening show of the autumn season from Eastbourne Theatres is a tried and tested, star-studded darkly funny thriller.
The Other Side of Murder is the third in what director Philip Franks called a “murder trilogy” after the previous productions: Murder in the Dark and Murder at Midnight.
I had both the good fortune and misfortune to have seen – and reviewed – Murder at Midnight last October. You can read our review here.
The good fortune is that I took my seat at the Devonshire Park Theatre knowing exactly what to expect: a play that switched seamlessly from comedy to tragedy, from farce to thriller, with plenty of twists and turns.
The misfortune was that The Other Side of Murder felt far too familiar and derivative as though extending the franchise for its own sake rather than producing something new.
Actor and comedian Rufus Hound takes the lead role as Peter who is on the cusp of a comeback as TV medium Darius Divine after years in the wilderness. Rufus is perhaps best known for his role in One Man, Two Guvnors and he is adept at bringing out the farcical side of the story.
But the plot lacked the descent of a man in control to a man in chaos. Peter is floundering right from the start, unable to find his glasses after waking up on the sofa following an afternoon drinking at the pub and struggling to remember his lines as he rehearses for his big TV comeback with a potential audience of millions.
Into Peter’s house comes his pregnant lover Laura (Aisha Jawando) demanding money and threatening to expose his infidelity. The confrontation between the two turns nasty.
There are some brilliantly funny scenes as Laura pretends to be a French chef preparing dinner for Peter, his wife and agent Susannah (Carla Mendonca), her mother Miriam (Susie Blake) and his daughter from his first marriage Jen (Beth Lilley) who has just returned from Australia.
Just like last year’s show, Susie Blake’s character is underestimated. This time she appears to be a dotty Gilbert and Sullivan-loving former actress who sings songs from The Mikado and resents being put in a granny annexe of her former home. But she soon proves to have insights and powers far above Peter’s. Her claim that she has “the true gift of spirit communication” is dismissed by Peter, only to come back – forgive the pun – to haunt him!
This is what I wrote about last year’s production: “Overall, I laughed in my seat more than I jumped out of my seat so I would definitely place the emphasis on “comedy” over “thriller”.”
The same is true of The Other Side of Murder and I enjoyed the laughs more than the gasps. Some of the one-liners from daughter Jen and mother Miriam from one side of the stage perfectly puncture the tension from Peter and Susannah on the other side.
There are also some fantastic stage illusions with coats falling off pegs on a rack, a chair rising up and – best of all – a floating bloody knife. And the finale delivers the ultimate twist to the plot.
Anyone seeing this show without having seen the others in the series will enjoy it for what it is. Anyone who’s seen the previous shows may well feel that it is going over the same ground.
:: The Other Side of Murder runs at the Devonshire Park Theatre until Saturday 10 October. Tickets available here
:: Paul Bromley is a member of the actors’ union Equity and a member of The Magic Circle. He is a volunteer writer with Eastbourne Reporter. Paul is a qualified journalist and broadcaster who worked for 40 years for regional newspapers, the Press Association and Sky News. He now works in community rail.