In the Shear Madness Salon, things have gone mad. In Stage West’s production Shear Madness by Paul Pörtner, the landlord Isabelle Cherney, who is also a famous pianist, is murdered by stabbing in her apartment upstairs. A pair of hair cutting shears is the murder weapon and the staff and customers in the salon downstairs are suspects. The audience are witnesses who determine who the murderer is. The play is hilarious, entertaining and smart. It’s full of funny political quips that get thrown around at top speed. Stage West has a witty production that is sheer fun.
Tony Whitcomb (Andrew McAllister) owns the hair salon Shear Madness in Kensington. It’s a normal day in the salon. Nick O’Brien (Kevin Sepaul) comes in for a shave and Mrs. Shubert (Seana-Lee Wood) is in to have her hair coloured by her hairstylist Barbara Demarco (Katherine Fadum). Eddie Lawrence (Gord Gammie) is also waiting for hair services. The unfolding of the day is important as there are quiet moments in the play that are key to who the murderer is. The piano playing from upstairs stops and Barbara comes in screaming about Isabelle’s murder. We discover that Nick O’Brian is an undercover cop and he and his partner Mickey Thomas (Dan Curtis Thompson) are at the salon to investigate. Everyone is interrogated one by one and Sepaul leads the audience through the investigation, answering audience questions and cataloguing evidence. Everyone on stage could possibly have a motive, which makes this so much fun.
It’s the sharpness of this production along with the poignant jokes that puts this production over the top. There are jabs at current events that are so hilarious. When the cops first get in, they arrest the staff and read them their rights. Someone asks ‘Aren’t those the American rights?’ The fast reply is ‘They aren’t using them anymore.’ This play is full of one liners that are top notch.
Fadum has experience in her role as Barbara, having played the same character in Vertigo’s production of Shear Madness in 2015. She is both funny and suspicious in this production. McAllister’s Tony is flamboyant and dynamic, but he might be able to push the bounds of the character even further. Gammie’s Eddie is slimy and a little bit shady giving this production its whodunnit feel. Wood’s Mrs. Shubert is vain and obsessed with image and also adds a little spice into the mix of suspects. Sepaul as Nick O’Brien shoulders all the weight of hosting the investigation and Thompson does a good job as O’Brien’s goofy and clueless partner. Director Robert Lohrmann ensures that the play unfolds for the audience, who don’t always realise that they are part of the investigative team.
The set design by Anton deGroot is impressive, with a sink in the middle of the stage with running water, and an array of hairstyling stations. Raili Boe ensures that every costume fits the character and also ensures that everyone wears some sort of red. It’s a fun detail. Zach Coulter’s sound design and Ajay Badoni’s lighting design ensure that the audience knows when they can participate or not through theatrical cues.
Things have gone mad at Shear Madness Salon, in a good way.
Stage West’s production of Shear Madness runs until November 9th. More information is available online.
Photo: Seana-Lee Wood, Gord Gammie, Dan Curtis Thompson, Katherine Fadum, Kevin Sepaul, Andrew McAllister. Credit: Benjamin Laird Arts & Photo