When I walked into Minneapolis’ Theatre in the Round’s intimate circular stage, I knew I would be in for a treat during “The Murder on the Links,” a new adaptation of the Agatha Christie story by Kate Danley. However, about halfway through the performance, I found some serious issues within the acting that left my hopes for the rest of the performance as dead as the wealthy victim.
The two-hour-and-20-minute production describes the adventure of Hercule Poirot, played by Ben Tallen, and his friend, Captain Arthur Hastings, played by Jake Leif, as they investigate Paul Renauld’s murder, which took place on a golf course.
The first scene left me wowed, starting with a brief monologue from Captain Hastings as he addresses the audience. Leif’s classic British accent is remarkable, and it adds to the performance greatly. Hastings’ Belgian companion and his “little grey cells” work overtime during this mystery as Poirot tries to solve the murder before rival detective Monsieur Giraud.
The friendship between Hastings and Poirot is the most memorable part of this play. Both actors use gestures to perfect their characters, from the uptight nature of Poirot — as Tallen constantly grooms his stiff mustache — to the loveable Hastings, who is always one step behind Poirot in solving the mystery.
However, the small, limited set of the round theatre proves to be disadvantageous for world-building. While the set contains all the essential aspects of the French Villa Geneviève, such as perfectly manicured flower beds, a small cafe table and dainty chairs, I had a hard time visualizing some of the essential scenes of the play, as they took place on a golf course that was nowhere to be found.
The subplot of Hastings’ romantic endeavors does not feel like it meshes well with the rest of the plot, and the romantic tension does not build over the course of the play. While the audience encounters Hastings’ admirer a handful of times, I saw the actors struggling to depict a romance that usually builds over an entire novel rather than a two-hour performance. This relationship feels awkwardly inserted at the end to satisfy the inner romantic.
I so deeply desired to grasp all of the clues within this play, yet one key part inhibited me from understanding a good portion of the plot: accents. Despite having dialect coaches, some of the actors’ French accents are barely understandable at times, causing me to physically lean forward in my chair to hear them better. I missed some key details in the “whodunit” moments, which left me looking at the Wikipedia page during intermission.
While this play has all the elements a great murder mystery should — blackmail, romance, mistaken identity and, most obviously, death, the smaller details made me feel dissatisfied.
“The Murder on the Links” will play from Nov. 21 to Dec. 21 at the Theatre in the Round.
Grace Woelfel can be reached at woel8456@stthomas.edu.
