The 2014 Tony Award-winning musical "A Gentleman's Guide to Love and Murder" is set to hit the Gammage stage on Tuesday in its first national tour, bringing with it a comedic tale of crime, romance and all the drama in between.
The musical tells the tale of Monty Navarro, a peasant who finds out his family has a secret royal history that makes him ninth in line to inherit the earldom of Highhurst. In order to avenge his poor family and gain the affections of his wealthier love interest, Monty embarks on a mission to murder the eight relatives that stand above him and take their place as Earl of Highhurst.
As he befriends and then kills each of his relatives (all of whom are played by the same actor), Monty falls for his distant cousin Phoebe. Their romance complicates affairs and creates a love triangle that he has to resolve while establishing his place in the family hierarchy.
The show is focused on murder but does so in a comedic way, combining different humor to entertain audiences of all ages despite its grisly premise. Monty's relatives die by falling, drowning, bee stings, poison and more.
Robert L. Freedman wrote the Tony Award-winning book and lyrics for the musical over the course of almost ten years in collaboration with composer Steven Lutvak. They based the premise off the 1907 novel "Israel Rank: The Autobiography of a Criminal" by Roy Horniman, as well as its 1946 film adaption titled "Kind Hearts and Coronets."
Freedman said Monty is a relatable character because the audience can empathize with his motive for retribution, though most people wouldn't resort to such drastic methods.
"Everybody can identify with the desire to get revenge," he said. "Most of us, I hope, 99 percent of us wouldn't go so far as to murder people. But we can identify with the desire for revenge, and I think that's what keeps people rooting for him."
He said the plot is interesting because of Monty's fascinating character traits.
"One of the things I love is he's an absolutely perfect gentleman: He's polite, sophisticated and kind," Freedman said. "Yet at the same time he's killing people. I love that juxtaposition."
Several songs within the light-hearted musical use humor and history to expose modern issues, which the writer said was intentional.
"Our main goal is to entertain, but we also are motivated to show and expose the hypocrisy of society," he said. "We're exposing the hypocrisy of the Edwardian era in
One of the songs, titled "I Don't Understand the Poor," features one of Monty's wealthier relatives complaining about the lower classes. He remarks how "to be so debased / is in terrible taste" and "it seems to be nothing but stubbornness / what's all the suffering for?"
Freedman said the song is a nod to the contemporary issue of the bottom 99 percent versus the top one percent and reflects on "blaming the poor for their own problems versus looking at the cause."
Another song, called "It's Better With a Man," shows the struggle of a homosexual man in a society where he can't openly express his orientation. Freedman said the fact that it's still an issue makes it relatable to audiences today.
"Times have changed, but not completely, and the hypocrisy is used for humor in our story," he said.
Although the show prods at some deeper social issues, Freedman said the heart of the musical is built on entertainment.
"What I hope audiences will take away is that they had a great night in the theater," he said. "A great, satisfying evening where they've been entertained, have laughed their heads off and have been uplifted by the sheer joy of musical theater."
Actress and recent NYU graduate Adrienne Eller plays Monty's love interest Phoebe in the musical's first national tour. She said as soon as she saw the show for the first time, she knew it was something she wanted to be involved with.
"I love the show," she said. "I completely fell in love with it the first time I saw it — it was so funny, clever and beautifully unique. It's a jewel of a musical and I immediately wanted to be a part of it."
Now that Eller is starring in the production, her favorite part of the experience has been touring across the country.
"I really like being able to go city to city and bring the show to lots of different people," she said. "It's really fulfilling. I enjoy getting to meet people after the show, and it's fun for me to hear people experiencing ('A Gentleman's Guide') for the first time."
Most audience members at the Gammage stop will likely be watching the musical for the first time, but that's not always the case.
ASU medical studies freshman Anthony J. Garcia saw "A Gentleman's Guide" in 2012 when it premiered at the Hartford Stage in
Garcia said he plans to see the touring production this week, and that he has high hopes for the national tour despite its variation from the original.
"I'm sure it'll be different because you have different actors, but honestly I think they'll do it justice," he said. "I'm looking forward to it."
The show runs at Gammage from March 15 to 20. Tickets are still available and can be purchased on the Gammage website.
Related links:
An abridged history of Mill Avenue: The grandiose and worldly ASU Gammage
ASU celebrates 50 years of cultural excellence, community involvement at Gammage Auditorium
Reach the reporter at skylar.mason@asu.edu or follow @skylarmason42 on Twitter.
Like The State Press on Facebook and follow @statepress on Twitter.
