The Manor- Murder and Madness at Greystone is by now a Los Angeles/Beverly Hills institution. The play, now in its eighteenth year, surpassed its 200th performance in 2014.
The show is a roman a clef, a fictionalization based on real events with the actual historical characters given new names.
To lend authenticity to the presentation, the show is presented in the grand and glorious architectural landmark in which the events of 90 years ago actually took place. Audience members are led from room to room in the lovingly restored marvelous Greystone Mansion as different scenes of the narrative are portrayed, leading up to a shocking and apparent murder and suicide.
The Manor- Murder and Madness at Greystone depicts momentous changes in the fortunes of the fabulously wealthy MacAlister Family (fictional surrogates of the oil-rich Doheny Family). Family patriarch and mining tycoon Charles makes an illegal if well-intentioned loan to Senator Alfred Winston (a stand-in for Secretary of the Interior Albert Fall). Both men face imminent disgrace and worse in the oncoming Teapot Dome bribery scandal, which will engulf the Warren Harding administration. A scion of the MacAlister family faces violent death.
Who is to blame?
Written by Kathrine Bates. Directed by Martin Thompson. Original direction by Beverly Olevin. Presented by Theatre 40.
The Manor: Murder and Madness at Greystone
Critics
LemonMeter
Reviews: 4
Reviews
With set design by David Hunt Stafford and Jackie Petras – but really by the opulence of a mansion itself – THE MANOR gives the audience a peek into the life of the 1920’s rich and famous. As the audience is led through the house by James, the butler (David Hunt Stafford), Ursula, the housekeeper (Katherine Henryk), and Ellie, the maid (Esther Levy Richman), they will savor the splendiferous surroundings which serve as everyday life for the wealthy family. Directed by Martin Thompson and produced by David Hunt Stafford, THE MANOR remains a not-to-be-missed production.
"The Manor", a murder mystery suspense thriller simply cannot be missed!
The majestic Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills is the setting of this truly extraordinary production by playwright Kathrine Bates where audience members are led from room to room as different scenes of the play is performed.
The annual production has become a Los Angeles/Beverly Hills institution with several performances selling out even before tickets go on sale to the public. Its popularity, no doubt, is due to the scandalous true story as told by the talented actors who each inhabit their characters to a tee, costumed to time-period perfection, as well as the chance to be inside the grand and glorious architectural landmark in which the tragic events of 91 years ago actually took place.
Along with viewing the homestead and the grounds, one will witness a great play that’s fully loaded with all the drama that such a stage work firmly allows.
With set design by David Hunt Stafford and Jackie Petras – but really by the opulence of a mansion itself – THE MANOR gives the audience a peek into the life of the 1920’s rich and famous. As the audience is led through the house by James, the butler (David Hunt Stafford), Ursula, the housekeeper (Katherine Henryk), and Ellie, the maid (Esther Levy Richman), they will savor the splendiferous surroundings which serve as everyday life for the wealthy family. Directed by Martin Thompson and produced by David Hunt Stafford, THE MANOR remains a not-to-be-missed production.
"The Manor", a murder mystery suspense thriller simply cannot be missed!
The majestic Greystone Mansion in Beverly Hills is the setting of this truly extraordinary production by playwright Kathrine Bates where audience members are led from room to room as different scenes of the play is performed.
The annual production has become a Los Angeles/Beverly Hills institution with several performances selling out even before tickets go on sale to the public. Its popularity, no doubt, is due to the scandalous true story as told by the talented actors who each inhabit their characters to a tee, costumed to time-period perfection, as well as the chance to be inside the grand and glorious architectural landmark in which the tragic events of 91 years ago actually took place.
Along with viewing the homestead and the grounds, one will witness a great play that’s fully loaded with all the drama that such a stage work firmly allows.