#90: "Sleuth," classism, misogyny and Sondheim with Grace Todd

Chasing Phantom

Happy New Year to all! During these cold winter months, there's nothing as cozy as an old-timey murder mystery and "Sleuth" is one of the twisty-est. Helping me navigate the plot -- not to mention the embedded commentary on class, race and misogyny -- is Grace Todd. As a literature doyenne with the fabulously entertaining podcast, Didn't Read It, Grace has a perfectly tuned perspective on what playwright Anthony Shaffer is playing at with this complex, tete-a-tete between two British gentlemen.

Bolstered by a fantastic movie adaptation, "Sleuth" was a supremely popular play, both on Broadway and then in regional theaters the world over. It has been surpassed in the years since by other murdery stage stories, but it's definitely worth a fresh look. The opportunities for two gifted actors to chew the hell out of some scenery are rampant and the double and triple blinds that unfold are satisfying even to the modern viewer already jaded by more modern plot machinations.

Grace and I have a great time pulling apart the various components of "Sleuth" and Grace, always the dutiful reader, shares some insights from her reading of play that will be intriguing to folks like me who have only seen the movie.
As always, please check out my website, ChasingPhantom.net, for more fun facts related to "Sleuth" and video clips of or related to the show. I'll be back in your feed in two weeks!