Mark Schenfisch and John Wascavage Photo by Erin Weller

The other lead, John Wascavage, plays The Suspects, a platoon of characters immediately tossed into the action by the birthday murder of famous author Arthur Whitney. Without giving away any secrets, they comprise the multitude of persons involved in the periphery of the great man's life in rural New England in this play by Joe Kinosian (book and music) and Kellen Blair (book and lyrics).

Plays like Murder for Two, The Thirty-Nine Steps, and others that use a small cast to present multiple characters all depend on sharp, if not deep, acting and often frenetic pacing to cover the story and multitude of characters in a compressed stage time (90 intermissionless minutes here). The Capital City Theatre cast do not disappoint.

They perform the play at the Capital City CORE, the combined rehearsal/administrative space of the company, which includes a large studio that seats 80 in three-quarter round, where the performance takes place. The space contains few theatrical amenities beyond some lights scattered around the perimeter (set and lights, John Frautschy) and some set pieces, most notably a baby grand piano stage center played (sometimes four-handed) by the cast. (The sound requires precise cues and synchronization by the actors–sound engineer McKenna Howard and sound board operator Alan Irgang.) The few set pieces include a library cleverly painted in miniature on a square pillar near the piano and a room on the edge of the mansion. This room doesn't do very much and could have been omitted, per the authors' preference for minimal staging.

Wascavage as The Suspects makes the most of a variety of props and costume pieces, often switched in mid-line, to suggest the multitude of potential villains. Never before, it seems, has someone created such meaning with a few hats and a pair of glasses (props designer, Erin Weller).

Of course, director Gail Becker deserves credit for pulling together such a theatrical tour-de-force, albeit with minimal resources. God knows what she must have gone through when one of her cast dropped out!

Murder for Two has been extended through March 9, 2025, at Capital Theatre CORE, 6120 University Ave., Middleton WI. For tickets and information, please visit www.capitalcitytheatre.org.