Last year, writer/composer Andrew Gerle and writer/director D.J. Salisbury asked me to play the wonderfully peculiar role of Dickie the Doorman in the first developmental reading of their new immersive speakeasy musical Whisper Darkly. I was delighted to return to the speakeasy this August for the latest developmental reading. This fascinating piece just keeps getting better and better. Imagine Cabaret crossed with Sleep No More. It’s just really cool. Fabulous songs, clever and surprising script. And I was delighted to reprise the role of Dickie, who is not the brightest bulb on the string, but who tries hard and is obsessively devoted to one of the chorus girls. I love him in all his dim, creepy sincerity. Once again, the entire cast was absolutely stellar.
We also put together a fun little promotional teaser, which we shot at The Back Room–one of only two remaining prohibition-era speakeasies in NYC. Here are stills from that video, including Dickie looking through the peep hole and awaiting the password. Having worked on two readings of the show now, I can tell you the password is definitely: TOOMUCHFUNFUN!
