Participating in the 10th Shanghai International Comedy Festival in 2024, the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center presents the ‘Hou Lang New Trend’ season, featuring the hilarious and suspenseful Broadway musical ‘Murder For Two’ in Chinese.
With just a piano and two performers, this musical tells a hilarious and bizarre story of a murder investigation. The musical ‘Murder For Two’ was created by Kellen Blair and Joe Kinosian, winning the ‘Joseph Jefferson Award’ for Best New Musical, ‘New York Drama Desk Award’ for Outstanding Book of a Musical, ‘Drama League Award’ for Outstanding Broadway Production of a Musical, and ‘Outer Critics Circle Award’ for Outstanding New Off-Broadway Musical. Premiered at the Second Stage Theatre in Off-Broadway, USA; its global premiere was held at the Chicago Shakespeare Theater in May 2011, with four extensions over six months, and then performed in various theaters across the United States. Since 2015, it has been produced and performed by different companies in countries and regions such as the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, China, Japan, South Korea, Argentina, and Australia. In December 2016, the Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center introduced the Chinese version of ‘Murder For Two’ for the first time, which has been performed in over 200 shows in more than 10 cities across the country and has become a small theater musical loved by tens of thousands of domestic audiences. Plot Summary: Mr. Arthur Whitney is a world-renowned best-selling novelist in a small town. One night, his wife, neighbors, niece, and friends such as a psychiatrist and a ballet dancer gather to surprise him with a birthday party. However, as Arthur enters his home, a gunshot rings out, and he is found dead in the center of the room, marking the beginning of a murder case… Officers Marcus and Row rush to the scene, striving to solve this perplexing case, only to find that everyone present is a patient of the same psychiatrist; even more bizarrely, almost everyone has been a character in Arthur’s best-selling novels… Who is the murderer? Can the bumbling police and mystery enthusiasts find the truth? Listen to the witty, humorous, and laughter-filled piano fantasia as it sings to you one by one! Cast and Crew: Produced by Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center | Producer: Zhang Huiqing | Executive Producer: Tian Shui | Artistic Director: Yu Rongjun | Co-Executive Producer: He Nian | Producer: Liu Lei | Writer/Music: Joe Kinosian [USA] | Writer/Lyrics: Kellen Blair [USA] | Director: Tian Shui | Rehearsal Director: Fu Zhonghao | Music Director: Jiang Qinghua | Vocal Coach: Tang Aimin | Piano Coach: Hu Yuzhi | Set Design: Jiao Ran Main Actors (in order of the first performance): Pang Shengzhi, Zhou Keren, Xu Yiran, Zhai Song, Guang Jiawei, Hu Chuhao * Two actors per day, schedule details refer to the cast list Performance Information: Performance Dates: December 12, 2024 – January 5, 2025, 19:30 (no performance on Mondays, additional 14:00 afternoon shows on December 21, 22, 28, 29, January 4, only 14:00 afternoon show on December 15, January 5) Venue: Shanghai Dramatic Arts Center · Drama Space Ticket Prices: 150/250/380 CNY (Tuesday-Thursday, Sunday 19:30 shows; except January 1) 180/280/380 CNY (Friday-Saturday, Sunday 14:00 shows; January 1) * Recommended for audiences aged 16 and above.* Please note that the specific performance information and cast lineup are subject to the theater’s announcement on the day of the show. The show is open from December 22nd to January 5th, with performance times and durations subject to the actual schedule at the venue.
