There are plenty of unexpected twists and turns in KCAT’s Dial M for Murder – KC STUDIO

Elise Poehling and Hillary Clemens in Murder on call (Brian Paulette)

Many are probably thinking of Murder on call as one of the ultimate crime thrillers. But by the parameters of the genre laid out in the play itself, this classic is not a crime thriller at all; it is a thriller. A crime thriller presents its audience with a dead body and the question of who killed the victim. A thriller, on the other hand, tells us who the murderer (or potential murderers) is, but leaves us with a number of other questions – how the crime will end, how the characters got to this point, and, the biggest question of all, will they get away with it?

In 2022, Jeffrey Hatcher released a new adaptation of Frederick Knott's 1952 play Murder on call(Knott also wrote the screenplay for the Alfred Hitchcock film two years later.) Hatcher's version, currently on stage at the Kansas City Actors Theatre, retains the historical setting but manages to give the play a modern feel. Two notable changes to the characters also heighten the tension in an already nerve-wracking dynamic.

Tony (Darren Kennedy) is a failed writer who has decided to kill his wife Margot (Elise Poehling) after discovering that she was having an affair with her friend Maxine (Hillary Clemens), a thriller writer. However, it is not jealousy that drives Tony to murder. It is just her money. The play contains a satisfying number of twists and turns and some classics of the genre, including a shady figure from Tony's past (Bradley J. Thomas) who is hired to commit the murder and a skilled detective (Jen Mays) who keeps her cards close to the vest.

In the original play, Tony is a former tennis pro. Hatcher's career change adds a layer of simmering resentment, made worse by the fact that Tony works for Maxine's publisher. The change of gender of Margot's former lover also makes the situation that much more tense and dangerous. The play never directly addresses the risks of being in a secret same-sex relationship in the 1950s, but we can sense the palpable danger when Margot reveals that she has been blackmailed (by her husband, not that she knows).

Murder on call isn't a sophisticated piece, but it's fun. The characters remain fairly superficial, and while there's room to develop some complexity in each of them, they never descend into caricature, and strong performances throughout back up Hatcher's brisk script and keep things moving along pleasantly. Kelli Harrod's only set is a chic 1950s-style apartment, and Matt Snellgrove keeps it plain and simple with the costumes. Zan de Spelder's lighting casts long shadows, and while the effect is dramatically noirish, the trade-off means that the actors are literally in the dark for long stretches.

KCATs Murder on call is extremely entertaining. Directed by Katie Gilchrist, the talented cast ensures that Hatcher's witty remarks come along quickly and that a sense of lightness is maintained despite the dark subject matter. Fans of the historical thriller genre will especially enjoy it.

“Dial M for Murder” a production of the Kansas City Actors Theatre, runs through September 29 at City Stage, Lower Level of Union Station, 30 W Pershing Rd, Kansas City, MO. For more information, visit www.kcactors.org.