MOOSE MURDERS
Otago Pioneer Women's Hall, 362 Moray Place, Dunedin
01/08/2013 - 03/08/2013
Production Details
Counterpoint is proud to present Moose Murders – by Arthur Bicknall, directed by Abby Howells.
Moose Murders is known to many as the worst play in the world, set in “The Wild Moose Lodge”, a secluded cabin deep in the Adirondack Mountains.
Ten unlikely guests including the Holloway Family, a failed comedy double act and a suspicious caretaker are trapped in the lodge during a storm. The group pass the time by playing a murder mystery game. However, real murder occurs and real mystery ensues. Is it the mysterious “Moose Murderer” returned from the dead, or something much more sinister?
The original production of Moose Murders opened and closed on the same night on Broadway. It has become synonymous with bad theatre and has become the bench mark from which all bad Broadway shows are measured.
Director Abby Howells has revived this terrible play and with the help of a fantastic cast, has turned it into a hilarious murder/mystery black comedy not to be missed.
“From now on, there will always be two groups of theatergoers in this world: those who have seen Moose Murders, and those who have not”. – New York Times.
1st, 2nd and 3rd of August 2013
at 7.30pm
Otago Pioneer Woman’s Hall
Tickets $15 Waged, $10 Unwaged
Tickets available at the door or through http://www.dashtickets.co.nz/event/k2nsd9x3y
Information on Counterpoint
Counterpoint is the newest and liveliest theatre company in Dunedin. Counterpoint was formed in October 2012 by young theatre practitioners Alex Wilson and Hadley R. Taylor, who debuted with a sell out season of Toa Fraser’s Bare, which Alex won the Rising Star Award at the Dunedin Theatre Awards for his efforts in directing that piece.
In 2013 Counterpoint ran a successful PledgeMe Campaign, and has since launched its 2013 Season which is an eclectic mix of comedies, dramas, Kiwi works and an exciting Dunedin dance piece. More Information can be found in one of our yearly programmes or on our and brand new wesbite at www.counterpointproductions.co.nz.
This season will demonstrate Counterpoint’s commitment to support young artists and Counterpoints goals, which are to:
Foster a youth oriented theatre industry in Dunedin that produces work by young people for young people.
Provide opportunities for young theatre practitioners to hone their craft in a supportive environment
Remove barriers to young people producing their work, by offering financial, administrative and production assistance.
Promote the up skilling of young artists by running workshops led by industry professionals.
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/counterpointproductions
Website: http://www.counterpointproductions.co.nz
CAST
Emma Bauer
Rachel Chin
Alayne Dick
Nell Guy
Rosie Howells
Baz Macdonald
Ben McCarthy
Dianne Pulham
Josh Smythe
Alex Wilson
CREW
Stage Manager: Max Sims
So bad it is hilarious: a travesty of a travesty
Review by Jennifer Aitken 02nd Aug 2013
Moose Murders is synonymous with all that is terrible in modern theatre. This atrocity, penned by Arthur Bicknell, both opened and closed on the 22nd of February 1983 in the Eugene O’Neill Theatre on Broadway. To this day the infamy of Moose Murders lives on and it is still held as the standard by which all Broadway failures are judged.
But could Moose Murders really be that bad?
Abby Howells, with great insight, has taken Moose Murders and made it worse. Yes, that’s right WORSE! Using the cheapest gimmicks available and channelling Christopher Guest, Howells has triumphed in making Moose Murders so bad it is good.
The cast pathologically upstage each other so much they all sort of cancel each other out and the true strength of their skills become apparent at the most unexpected times. An unscripted sneeze inspires a reaction from young actor Ben McCarthy that exhibits the most astute comic timing I have ever witnessed – hilarity ensues.
Having never read the original script it is hard to distinguish between scripted dialogue, the tid-bits I know the team have added for that touch of extra colour, and lines added to cover the surprises the actors encounter during their performance. Regardless, everything that passes through the actors’ lips is hilarious. It is safe to say the original script is being treated with all the respect it deserves: very, very little.
Every actor has a moment of sheer brilliance. Please excuse me while I list them all, they do all deserve a mention.
Alex Wilson (Howie Keene) and Dianne Pulham (Snooks Keene) are a delightful “Mitch and Mickey” duo (a lá Guest’s A Mighty Wind), they are both naive and genuine in equal measure.
Nell Guy, as the faux American Indian, has mastered the art of emphasising the wrong syllable in nigh on every word, and she has done so with a perfectly straight face. Hedda Holloway is very accurately portrayed by Rachel Chin as a manipulative mother even Lucille Bluth would be proud of, and Josh Smith’s Sidney Holloway is suitably limp.
In the role of Nelson Fay, Baz Macdonald is commanding; he really holds the show together as the narrative begins to unravel. Nelson’s wife Lauraine played by Alayne Dick is memorable although her time on stage is limited.
The real stand-outs though are Emma Bauer, who plays Nurse Dagma ridiculously but with unfaltering conviction; McCarthy as Stinky, who has incredible comic timing; Rosie Howells as little Gay Holloway, who is Dunedin’s own Beyoncé in the making.
Abby Howells has chosen to mount Moose Murders in a venue any theatre technician would dread: the Otago Pioneer Women’s Hall. Severely restricted by a lack of three-phase power, a sound system, or even doorways that accommodate an essential prop (Sidney Holloway’s wheelchair), Howells is not content in creating a space that appeared difficult to work in; she literally subjects her team to a real life nightmare – and it works!
Again, it is hard to decide whether the paintings and fake flowers have been brought into the space to make it this horrible or whether they were already here; either way it doesn’t really matter. This production has a low budget-no effort feel to it, but it is obvious a lot of time and energy has been put in to achieve this.
At the end of it all, it doesn’t really matter who the murderer /murderers are. It gets awfully confusing towards the end but I don’t care because l have never laughed so hard in my life. Counterpoint’s production of Moose Murders truly is a travesty of a travesty and it is the most genuinely funny thing I have seen in a long, long time.
I am so happy I can now say I have seen the infamous Moose Murders and I give it my strongest recommendation, although this production is on for three times longer than the original it is still a very short season so don’t miss out!
Copyright © in the review belongs to the reviewer
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