Murder on West Moon Street

Full Length Play, Comedy / 4m, 4f

Young Lord Arthur is deliriously happy – just down from Oxford and engaged to be married – when a mysterious palm reader predicts that he will commit a murder.

Murder on West Moon Street

Cast Size
4m, 4f
Duration
105 Minutes
Subgenre
Farce, Mystery/Thriller
Accolades
Not Applicable
Target Audience
- Appropriate for all audiences

Additional Info

Young Lord Arthur is deliriously happy – just down from Oxford and engaged to be married – when a mysterious palm reader predicts that he will commit a murder. A proper English gentleman, Arthur believes it is his duty to get this killing business over with before he marries. But his education has not provided him with the required skills, and a hilarious series of mishaps ensues as he sets about finding a victim.

Reviews

REVIEWS

"Oscar Wilde's short story Lord Arthur Savile's Crime is a clever mystery, written to indict the fate industry with whom late-19th-century aristocrats seemed so enthralled. The writer Rob Urbinati has molded the story into a briskly paced comedy of manners true to its author's greater spirit. A complete delight!" - The New York Times

"Urbinati's adaptation is deft, using the source material to its fullest and beautifully fleshing out several minor characters only alluded to in the original story." - Backstage

"Rob Urbinati has done a truly marvelous thing: He's turned an infrequently read Oscar Wilde short story into a play that improves on the original. A Wilde ride indeed!" - The New York Blade

Keywords

Death, Love, Marriage

Considerations

Performing Groups

High School/Secondary
College Theatre / Student
Community Theatre
Dinner Theatre
Professional Theatre
Reader's Theatre
Large Stage
Blackbox / Second Stage /Fringe Groups
Church / Religious Groups

Cautions

No Special Cautions

License details

Minimum Fee: $90 per performance

Production

Details

Time Period: 1900-1910
Duration: 105 Minutes
Setting: Murder on West Moon Street takes place in various locations in London, England in 1900.
Additional Features: Physical Comedy
Features / Contains: Period Costumes

Music

Musical Style: N/A (Not a musical)
Vocal Demands: N/A (Not a musical)
Chorus Size: N/A (Not a musical)

Casting

4m, 4f

LORD ARTHUR SAVILE - a gentleman. Naive
LADY WINDERMERE - his confidante. Grand
SYBIL MERTON - his betrothed. Clever
CHARLES - his valet. Devoted
LADY CLEM - his elderly aunt. Irritable
JANE PERCY - his cousin. Enthusiastic
MR. PODGERS - the cheiromantist. Mysterious
HERR WINCKELKOPF - an anarchist. Artistic

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Cast Attributes

Ensemble cast
Non-Traditional casting
Reduced casting (Doubling Possible)
Drag performance
Parts for Senior Actors

Casting Notes

The role of Lady Clem can be played by a man.

Resources

Available Services

Scripts

Authors

Rob Urbinati

Rob Urbinati is a freelance playwright, screenwriter, book author and theater director based in New York City. He is also director of new play development at Queens Theatre. Background and education Rob was born in Framingham, Massachusetts and currently resides in New York City[1]. He received a BA from the Universi ...

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Murder on West Moon Street was originally produced by Prospect Theater Company (Cara Reichel, Producing Artistic Director; Melissa Huber, Managing Director) at the Hudson Guild Theatre, New York City, April 21- May 20, 2007, under the director of Davis McCallum.

For information on economizing set and costume design, check out the author's suggestions here.

Murder on West Moon Street

Murder on West Moon Street