'Murder Among Friends' a good idea

The play begins black, lighting in the windows, illuminating the outlines of two lovers frisking in the shadows. They are whispering the words of amore, of passion and of murder.\nAt 8 p.m. on Friday, the second performance of Bob Barry's "Murder Among Friends" commenced in the quaint and inviting Brown County Playhouse in Nashville, Ind. The venue was energized. The high ceilings allowed the full packing of a house of theatre viewers comfortably, yet the nostalgic ambiance and stage arrangement kept the relationship between stage and seats intimate. Unfortunately, while the ensemble provided the effort to hold onto that energy, it ultimately fell short of saving Barry's dated and laboring script.\n"Murder Among Friends" was a good idea. The farce is set up interestingly enough, with adequate twists and turns to keep the interest of those finding the on-liners and one-dimensional characters trying. The delivery of the humor wasn't hopeless, but Joan Collins and Amelia Earhart jokes haven't struck gold since the Alan Parson's Project had a platinum record. It wouldn't have hurt to revamp the references. Since they set the stage in a modern Ikea inspired loft, with a 2002 New Year's countdown before the end of act one, there was no need to hold true to the ancient references of the script.\nThe audience could have used the help. A good majority of the first act progressed with only two of the main characters on stage at the same time; and alone, they weren't keeping the show alive. But once the cast began to work as a team, it was proven that even Barry's comic reachings could be overcome by solid performances.\nOne such performance was given by Coryell Barlow, the leading lady who portrayed Angela, a conspiring murderer and an unknowing target of betrayal. With the hairdo of Uma Thurman's Poison Ivy, she offered the same sultry intrigue with a forewarning affinity for blood.\nAccompanying Barlow was Jonathan Molitor portraying Ted, a double-crossing agent working for Angela's husband Palmer, played by Wolf Sherrill. Sherrill gave the confidence and strength of the leading man, whom despite a cheesy "Riverdance" entrance, was slick and ironic with his delivery and poise. But as the plot twists and we discover some of his character's evil tendencies, the result is a tension that doesn't cover all the bases. While the character develops a proper contempt for his conspirers, the anger comes too easily, without the confusion that should accompany a night where his wife's murder is planned, a second murder occurs unplanned and a plot against his own life is revealed!\nMolitor, however, proved to be the cast's weakest link. His radio announcer voice seemed too cartoony for even the most typical of farces. He was so divorced from the reality of his surroundings, that he didn't even have the presence of mind to fix Sherrill's flipped collar -- which he wore for the majority of the first act. Molitor even followed through with a blocking sequence where he straightened Sherrill's tie and still refused to realize that had he been a real person in the same situation he would have taken the two seconds to adjust his colleague's shirt dilemma.\nBut much fun ensued with the entrance of the rest of the players Chris Nelson and Melissa Nedell, playing a Southern man turned Broadway producer and his wife. Nelson's deadpan subtlety was an exquisite complement to much that was going on over-the-top of the show. And though Nedell's Brooklyn accent wavered at times, the civil disdain these cosmopolitan couples exhibited for each other was absolutely accurate, leaving the audience guffawing away. \nThe top boiled off with the appearance of Dane Bolinger, a "robber" whose bumbling and "mean street" attitude provided yet another well-needed divergence from Barry's main players' dialogue.\nThe play comes to its slightly formulaic resolution a little swiftly, practically using all of one monologue to explain every question the audience had in their heads, followed by one last quick twist before the lights fade on the sad pleading for a "Happy New Year." \nAs a straight murder-mystery, the ending would have been pleasant, but as a comedy, the justice served didn't satisfy my palate. In truth, none of the characters of the story deserved to come out on top, and perhaps taking a note from Shakespeare and making sure everyone ended up dying by the end might have been a better alternative.