Cluedo Meets The Birdcage In Murder For Two

Murder for Two, The Other Palace ★★★☆☆

By Hannah Foulds Last edited 63 months ago

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Cluedo Meets The Birdcage In Murder For Two Murder for Two, The Other Palace 3
Photo: Scott Rylander

Imagine a murder whodunnit — complete with thirteen larger-than-life archetypal Cluedo characters — performed by just two men. This is the unique offering of Murder for Two, describing itself as ‘Agatha Christie meets the Marx Brothers over a game of Cluedo’

While Ed MacArthur plays the consistent part of uptight detective, Jeremy Legat seamlessly slips into a myriad of odd and quirky characters — from a sexy ballerina to a needy psychiatrist, using just his glasses and hat as a costume change. He’s also very fabulous, creating some very extravagant and colourful characters. But with regular breaking of the fourth wall plus tongue-in-cheek asides, this play offers more depth and dark humour than this musical mystery first promises.

Photo: Scott Rylander

The play takes a while to get started and feels a little disjointed and confusing at first while characters are being established. The sound, in this instance, was unpredictable, with radio mics fading in and out depending on which direction the actor was facing – an unfortunate and distracting issue. But when the show starts to warm up and Legat presses down on the accelerator, building-up this one-man crowd, the audience is left mesmerised.

Murder for Two, The Other Palace, 12 Palace Street, SW1E 5JA. Tickets £29, until 13 January 2019.

Last Updated 17 December 2018