I had a lot of fun Chatting with Jennifer Aldrich of Adventuresses’ Club of the Americas from Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries! We talked about the Miss Fisher Con, her exciting trip to Melbourne to take be a part of Miss Fisher; Crypt of Tears and her thoughts on the spin-off. Listen in; http://tobtr.com/11305477
I also wrote a blog about the spin-off called Ms. Fisher Modern Mysteries;
Ms. Fisher’s Modern Murder Mysteries invades the US!!! My review of the new series some thoughts on the project; https://wp.me/p2MXCg-82
And we had these super guests;
I welcomed back the charming John Alsedek of Suspense, we talked about classic movies, classic radio and inspiration. It was such a fun interview, listen in; http://tobtr.com/11305519
I had so much fun chatting with author Sarah Read, we had a good time talking about books, reading, writing and inspiration, listen in; http://tobtr.com/11295017
I was so excited to chat with respected and very prolific voice actor Joe Ochman! We talked about all the shows he has done, how he got into the business, the difference between voice acting and regular acting. And the fun he is having doing fan conventions, listen in; http://tobtr.com/11295027
I have known Award winning composer, producer; David Raiklen, for a while but the first time I got to meet up with him face to face was this year at Comic Con. I was so excited he decided to join me on my show, we talked about how he got into composing, composing for film and what it was like being mentored by Oscar winner John Williams and Pulitzer Prize winner Mel Powel. Fascinating chat, listen in; http://tobtr.com/11288515
I had such a great time chatting with the multi-talented Julie Sharpe! We talked about her show, touring, the dancers in the show, her husband Anthony Sharpe and what he has coming up and they’re up coming exciting travels, listen in ; http://tobtr.com/11256149
I was happy to welcome back author; Mitzi Szereto, we talked about her new anthology and how her other books are doing including the really popular Teddy books; http://tobtr.com/11275175
I was super excited to chat with the talented award-winning artist Jeff Sturgeon! We talked art, how he got into illustration and fan conventions. We had so much fun, listen in; http://tobtr.com/11275381
Also here is the preview link for his Kickstarter campaign for the anthology The Last Cities of Earth. please take a look at the story, graphics the authors involved and our VERY cool rewards. We launch this Friday May 3rd at noon, help us make this thing happen !
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/182358062/2089733445…
Coming up on Chatting With Sherri;
Chatting With Sherri chats with author; Alex Shvartsman on 5/02/19 at 1pm pt; http://tobtr.com/11308251
Sherri’s Playhouse;
Coming soon, part two of Mabel of the Anzacs, adapted by Mary for the radio theater from her new novel, Mabel of the Anzacs! The confrontation you have been waiting for! Two women – one, a fiery teenager, the other a cantankerous octogenarian – find their mutual antipathy blossoms into an unlikely friendship. Together the two women forge a close bond that will change their lives forever. It’s a friendship for the ages!
Our cast interview for Mabel of the Anzacs, Part 2 was on last night! We had so much fun. No spoilers to Sunday’s show but definitely worth listening to; http://tobtr.com/11288533
Cards on the Table by Agatha Christie
This is another one of those times when the episodes with David Suchet are so strong in my mind, that I think I have read the book, but I didn’t. I was reading a biography of Agatha Christie and when they were speaking of certain plot points in Cards On The Table, I realized that, A. they changed the plot for the TV show and B. I never read it.
I really enjoyed it on several levels. First it was fun to meet the four sleuths in their introductions. The four sleuths in the novel, whom I have enjoyed for many years but it was interesting to read the way she described them for the very first time. And the characters of the four suspects which were pretty much the same, except that they weren’t…I am being circumspect because I don’t want to give too much away, but there are more killings in this book then in the TV show and one of the killings was done in a way I really didn’t expect at all.
Excellent book, I really highly recommend it. It is a lot of fun to watch the other sleuths as opposed to Poirot. As he uses misdirection and psychology to catch the killer.
The Mousetrap and Other Plays by Agatha Christie
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I had only read one of the Agatha Christie plays that she had adapted for the stage and that was because I was in it; Murder on the Nile. I was so excited to be in the play and I had the script of just that play, so I had no idea how many of her plays she herself had adapted. The first thing I noticed when I read it, and I was stunned by it, is that she took out Hercule Poirot. She replaced him with Canon Pennyfather from the novel; At Bertram’s Hotel. Because the Cannon was a rather dithering old man very different from the one in the play I was very startled by this, but they were her characters so I figured she could do what she wanted. This play is not in this edition that is why I felt I could talk about it a bit more since I am not giving away anything in the plot so no spoilers here.
This is book is a masterclass on adaption, she gets all the important information in these plays but it is subtly changed to be more suitable for stage. And there are changes, a lot of them, so hold on to your hats if you read the novels.
The three plays I liked best were; (which is the book; Five Little Pigs.) All the plays in this collection are excellent but these are the plays and novels that touched me most.
The Hollow has the least changes, and my favorites are still Midge and Edward, I am sorry but the rest are really hard for me to really relate to, I just love these two. They are adorable. The detective in it is Inspector Colquohoun with the help of Sergeant Penny who take over the duties of the famous Belgian sleuth they replaced. The mystery is well done, but it is changed so it will take place in one or two rooms. Excellent construction and she somehow gets all the really tense bits in despite the very confined area because of it being on the stage.
The second one is Go Back To Murder, The daughter of Caroline and Amyas is Carla, like the novel not Lucy like the film. It follows the line of the novel except in the play she aided by Justin Fogg (who I find utterly adorable), son of the lawyer who led Caroline Crale’s defense. This play is pretty much the same, but I just love the relationship between Justin and Carla, it is lovely to watch it develop. It is part of Christie’s brilliance I believe that she can create a believable relationship so quickly. They are at odds in the beginning and totally a unit by the end of the play. Again the staging is fascinating, all of Christie’s ideas to use the lighting in order to show the different locations and how the actors should look in the past and in the future. Brilliantly crafted, I can see why she enjoyed writing plays so much, she was really wonderful at it.
And last but not least is Towards Zero, she actually takes out my favorite character, I was disappointed by that but it is a really wonderful play. Again it is pretty much the same plot this time with the same detective, Inspector Battle, the same as the book really but I really just enjoyed the artistry of the transfer to stage she used. Still catching the killer once again in a confined area of the stage. Rather brilliantly managed.
If you’re a playwright and novelist this is the book for you, to learn to adapt your work. If you’re an actor or just appreciate a wonderful play its fascinating. If your Christie fan it is worth it, just to see the changes and the things she does not change. A little bit for everyone!
rithebard 