"A Little Murder Never Hurt Anybody" Aug. 24 at the 3D International in Black Eagle

Kirsten Kreutz and Dyllan Storm interact in a scene from "A Little Murder Never Hurt Anybody"

Last night I had a front-row seat at the 3D International's dinner theater showcase. Anytime a place offers guests the chance to enjoy a meal, and some live theater, my interest is already piqued.

It's hard to recommend if the show, or food, is bad, but last night I'm confident in saying that the show, and the meal, were both solid.  

"A Little Murder Never Hurt Anybody," follows the Perry family at New Year's Eve. Mr. Perry, following his friend's loss of his wife, finds that he wishes to kill his wife so he, too, can enjoy the freedom and independence that his friend now does.

So, Matthew, played by Allen Lanning tells his wife Julia, played by Tianta Stevens, that for his New Year's Resolution, he vows to kill her.

Julia, taken a bit back by this, doesn't believe he has it in him to do it. And, she's mostly right. She vows to stay alive to see their daughter, Bunny, played by CMR senior Kirsten Kreutz, marry Donald, played by Dyllan Storm. The final pieces to the puzzle are the cunning butler Butram played by Dan Mitchell and the clueless inspector played by Keern Haslem.

The reason this premise works is the nonchalant attitude the whole cast has when it comes to killing people. As audience members you don't see any deaths on stage, mostly, and it's a very tongue-in-cheek approach. That, to me, is the source of the most amusement -- seeing how blasè a group of people treat such a serious crime.

At the same time, many of the laughs come from the cluelessness of the characters, particularly Keern's inspector, Bunny and Matthew. I find it difficult to make morons come off as funny without resorting to cheap gags, but they pull it off nicely here.

Keern Haslem lays motionless in a scene from "A Little Murder..."

Between the second and third acts, I believe, the 3D staff served the audience dinner. I chose the salmon, which, although was a LITTLE dry, it was still enjoyable.

Maybe another sauce on top of the salmon would have added to the flavor. But, a minor complaint this is. At my table, the other people all had different options -- steak, chicken, prawns and pasta. Everyone seemed satisfied with their meals. Having a full bar right next to the stage was a great perk, too!

More than anything, I think this play shows what a group of experienced actors can do with a good script. The characters were believable, everyone's timing was spot on, and you found yourself engaged in what happens. Everyone is likable even the main protagonist/antagonist Matthew, who's trying, and failing, to kill his wife.

The fact that each of the characters have equal importance throughout the show only gives more proof of how well it all works together. It was truly an ensemble performance.

If I were going to give any constructive criticism, it would be that I felt that at times the plot was a little predictable. You could see things coming a scene or two before they happened.

Again, this is minor, because I suppose not every story needs a twist ending or a surprise character or some kind of ambitious goal to make your audience go out and change the world.

Sometimes, we want a show that gives us good laughs and a happy ending.

One more thought is I guess the price tag might keep some people from attending.
$70 for two people can be expensive. I look at it as a matter of what you pay for and what you get in return.

You're paying for dinner and a live show. Many shows cost $35 without dinner. You can spend $70 on a dinner, easy, without seeing a show. Having both makes $35 reasonable, I can understand that for some people it's a bit out of their price range for entertainment, however.

As such, I recommend seeing "A Little Murder Never Hurt Anybody" at the 3D. It plays again on Sept. 13 and I was told they will have two more encore showings later next month.