Mountain View’s Pear Theatre kicks off its 24th season with “The Art of Murder,” a murder mystery that opened Oct. 3 and runs through Sunday.
Written by Joe DiPietro in 2000, “The Art of Murder” centers around art dealer Vincent, who is invited to artist Jack Brooks’ secluded home, where his scheming wife Annie and housekeeper Kate also reside.
“It is hard to talk about what the show is about without giving away spoilers,” director Melissa Mei Jones said. “It’s a murder mystery, and it’s super twisty. So I would say come (see it) because it is reveal, upon reveal, upon reveal.”
The five-member cast comprises Jen Cuevas (Annie), Adriana Hokk and Aaishah Kelani (double cast as Kate), David Mister (Vincent) and Zack Vaughn-Munck (Jack).
Jones said having a tightly-knit team allows for more creative freedom for the actors and more say on decisions like costumes and facial expressions.
“I like letting the actors provide a lot of input and collaboration,” Jones said. “I’ve worked on shows before where the director is really specific and granular, where maybe they’ve said, ‘One step to the left. Now, cross your legs here. Now, scratch your face here.’ And as an actor, sometimes I feel a little confined when I get really granular directions like that.”
Cuevas said getting a feel for the character and her intentions is a long process that continued to evolve as they moved closer to opening night. Cuevas added that she relies on intuitive notes, without getting too attached to her perception until she meets the other actors and sees how the conversation naturally flows.
“You hear the dialogue from the other person actually delivering the lines and it changes the whole tone,” Cuevas said. “We’re in the middle of the rehearsal process and I’m still fleshing out who this character is. A lot of that is being driven by discoveries of ‘Oh, maybe this is what this line means.’ Or, ‘Oh, you’re laughing at that, I didn’t know it was funny.’”
Jones noted that each character is complex, which adds to the plot twists and revelations throughout the show. However, for Cuevas, the biggest challenge while fleshing out her character was learning how to pull the most prominent layer in each specific scene.
“I ask myself, ‘How do I get motivated by this hidden layer, but not give it away at the top?’” Cuevas said. “This production has been an exercise on subtlety for me.”
The cast has been rehearsing the 80-minute play five days a week for about three months. Cuevas, an accountant by day, said that even though the cast members are tired after a long day of work, the best thing about the rehearsals are the random bursts of laughter they share with each other.
“It’s that joy, that sense of creative space, that takes us out of that mundane workday,” Cuevas said. “That brings a lot of levity into our lives.”
Performances of “Murder” are set for 7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday at the Pear Theatre, 1110 La Avenida, Suite A. Tickets are $43-$45.
For tickets and more information, call (650) 254-1148 or visit thepear.org/whats-playing.
