“Dial M for Murder”: Soft Drapes, Sharp Edges

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Dial M for Murder

Clackamas Repertory Theatre — September 20th, 2025
Osterman Theatre – Oregon City, Oregon
Adapted by Jeffrey Hatcher, Directed by Karlyn Love
From the original by Frederick Knott

Notes from a Saturday matinee, when Margot and Maxine carried the heart of the story.

Archival Preface: Theatre vanishes the moment the curtain falls. What remains are fragments — playbills, programs, highlight reels, memories carried home. I write these notes not as a critic, but as an archivist of experience: preserving what I saw, what mattered, and why it deserves to be remembered.

This is not a review in the traditional sense. It is an archival record of a single Saturday matinee — a performance where Margot and Maxine carried the heart of the story.

Some productions leave you entertained; others leave you with memories worth preserving. Clackamas Repertory Theatre’s Dial M for Murder falls firmly into the latter. What follows are my impressions and archival notes on a matinee that reframed a classic.

Archival ephemera: playbill in hand before the curtain rose. Dial M for Murder at Clackamas Repertory Theatre, September 21, 2025. A thriller staged in an intimate setting where even the wallpaper becomes part of the suspense.
Archival ephemera: playbill in hand before the performance began. “Dial M for Murder” at Clackamas Repertory Theatre, September 21, 2025. A thriller staged in an intimate setting where even the wallpaper becomes part of the suspense.

First Impressions

Holding the bright, razor-edged program in my hands, I knew I was stepping into something more than a cozy mystery.

The set was stunning — a London flat of warmth and menace. Golden drapes and a tufted sofa promised comfort, but doorways framed like traps and corners holding shadow suggested danger. And by the door, Margot’s cream coat and Maxine’s black coat hung together — silent proof of their bond, unnoticed by the men around them.

Why This Production Stands Out

A horizontal fashion sketch style illustration of a mid-century London sitting room interior, drawn in vintage fashion plate style. The composition should match the attached stage set reference: include the golden tufted sofa, ottoman, and coffee table at the center, with a desk and chair at the left, fireplace mantle with candles and framed art to the right, and hall tree with coats and hats in the back. French doors with mustard-gold curtains are shown on the left, patterned walls with paneling and framed art all around, and hanging light fixtures sketched minimally above. The style should remain fashion illustration-like: gestural expressive ink lines, loose perspective, muted watercolor washes in gold, cream, and brown tones, with occasional highlight accents. The atmosphere should feel chic and archival, emphasizing stylish interior elements (sofa, desk, ottoman, hall tree, fireplace, curtains) as though accessories in a fashion spread.

This staging earns its place in my archive not only for its taut suspense, but for how it reframed a familiar thriller through a distinctly feminist lens.

Director Karlyn Love emphasized in her playbill letter that mysteries endure because they promise justice — the guilty are punished, the innocent go free — something life rarely guarantees.

A horizontal mid-century fashion sketch–style illustration set in an elegant London flat. The scene is rendered in vintage fashion plate style, with elongated proportions, expressive gestural ink linework, and soft muted watercolor washes. Two women sit close together on a tufted golden sofa, their posture intimate and conspiratorial. Maxine, early 40s, striking and confident, matches her established look and wears a sleek red cocktail dress. She sits upright yet leaning subtly toward Margot, holding a glass of bourbon in her hand. Beside her, Margot, early 40s, graceful and playful, matches her established appearance but now wears a turquoise dress. She leans toward Maxine with warmth, her gesture suggesting teasing intimacy. She too holds a glass of bourbon, the amber tones adding to the sophistication of the scene. Their interaction conveys closeness, sly innuendo, and affectionate intimacy through gesture and posture rather than facial detail. The background is minimal but stylish: faint sketch lines suggest the sofa’s tufting, a small ottoman in front of them, and a standing lamp beside them, grounding the space without overwhelming it. The palette is restrained yet cinematic: deep red, turquoise, amber, warm sepia neutrals, and muted golds. The mood is elegant, intimate, and sophisticated — a tableau of quiet affection rendered with the expressive elegance of mid-century fashion illustration.
1. Maxine and Margot on the Sofa
Fashion sketch, imagined scene from Dial M for Murder
In this rendering, the intrigue pauses. Margot, dressed in teal, leans close to Maxine, whose crimson gown anchors the composition in boldness. Both hold glasses, their shared gesture suggesting not indulgence but ritual — a moment of stillness carved out within the turbulence of the play.
The illustration echoes mid-century fashion plates, yet its focus shifts the narrative: the women are not defined by peril or suspicion but by recognition of one another. The chromatic dialogue between teal and red embodies balance — composure meeting passion, secrecy meeting strength.
Here, the thriller is reframed as portrait. What might once have been background becomes the heart of the story: intimacy not as subtext, but as center stage.

Her direction sharpened that idea, ensuring Margot Wendice and murder mystery writer Maxine Hadley were not sidelined as victims or plot devices, but instead carried the heart of the story. Their relationship, their secrets, and their survival became the true tension of the play, transforming blackmail and betrayal by men into something deeper and more resonant.

Margot & Maxine

The moment that crystallized this shift was small and radical:

Margot and Maxine shared a kiss.

“Night, sweets,” Maxine whispered before leaving for her BBC interview — an invitation Margot declined. What once might have been scandal was here simply love. Not spectacle, but recognition.

The accompanying sketch captures the moment’s essence — the elegance of restraint, the charged intimacy, the way posture and gesture told a story beyond words.

A horizontal fashion sketch style illustration depicting two elegant mid-century London women in their early 40s sharing a quiet, intimate moment in a stylish sitting room. Figures Maxine Confident and striking, consistent with her established appearance. She wears a sleek black cocktail dress, form-fitting and emphasizing elongated proportions. Her pose is poised yet leaning forward intimately, suggesting sophistication, subtle boldness, and quiet daring. Her features are rendered minimally but with confident posture, capturing the essence of 1950s fashion plate elegance. Margot Graceful and playful, consistent with her established look. She wears a cream dress, soft in tone and complementary against Maxine’s black attire. She leans in toward Maxine, their lips brushing in a tender, suggestive kiss. Her gesture conveys warmth, affection, and sly innuendo, expressed through posture and body language rather than facial detail. Style & Technique Expressive fashion illustration aesthetic inspired by 1950s London magazine sketches. Bold gestural ink lines outline the figures with fluid elegance. Elongated proportions give the figures grace and stylization typical of fashion plates. Soft muted watercolor washes create shading, subtle depth, and atmosphere without overwhelming detail. Setting & Background (Minimal but Chic) A golden sofa sketched behind the figures, rendered with loose suggestion rather than heavy detail. A small ottoman in the foreground anchors the composition. A hall tree with coats draped casually to the side, hinting at intimacy and lived-in elegance. A floor lamp adds a faint vertical element, framing the women subtly. The room evokes a mid-century London flat, chic and stylish, drawn with the economy of line seen in vintage fashion sketches. Palette & Atmosphere Restrained washes of black, cream, gold, sepia, and muted neutrals. The palette supports a cinematic, refined mood, rather than competing with the figures. The atmosphere is quiet, sophisticated, and intimate — suggestive without being overt, filled with warmth, wit, and understated sensuality. Overall Effect The illustration captures the sense of two women in love within a stylish mid-century London setting. Rendered with the wit, economy, and elegance of classic fashion illustration, the image balances refinement and intimacy, creating a moment that feels cinematic, expressive, and timeless.
2. The Kiss (Black & White Dresses)
Ink and wash on paper, fashion-plate style
This restrained yet radical sketch captures a kiss exchanged between Maxine and Margot — a moment once unthinkable on stage, reframed here as quiet recognition rather than scandal. The composition emphasizes symmetry and stillness: two women leaning in, balanced like mirror images, their intimacy rendered not as spectacle but as authenticity.

One subtle but unforgettable moment came in the first act, when Tony accidentally spilled his bourbon on Maxine’s crimson dress. Margot whisked Maxine into her bedroom to blot out the stain, and their dialogue shifted into sly innuendo. Margot suggested it might be easier if Maxine removed her dress entirely; Maxine, without missing a beat, teased back that she knew Margot had other ideas.

A horizontal mid-century fashion sketch–style illustration of two sophisticated London women inside an elegant flat. The composition is cinematic and rendered in the manner of a vintage fashion plate, with elongated proportions, bold gestural ink linework, and soft muted watercolor washes that capture the refined atmosphere of 1950s–60s magazine art. Maxine Early 40s, striking and confident, consistent with her established physical appearance. She wears a sleek crimson cocktail dress, fitted to her frame. A large dark stain runs across the front of the dress, clearly visible and central to the scene. In one hand she holds a glass of bourbon, its warm amber liquid echoing the stain on her dress, creating a visual motif. Her posture is poised but subtly mischievous, suggesting she is aware of and playfully reacting to the spill. Her facial details are minimal, but her stance and gesture imply sly humor and composure. Margot Early 40s, graceful and playful, matching her established appearance. She wears a pale house dress, soft and understated, in contrast to Maxine’s bold crimson attire. She leans toward Maxine with a teasing, intimate gesture, posture angled in warmth and complicity. Her body language suggests affection, playful teasing, and a quiet offer of comfort. Like Maxine, her expression is suggested through gesture rather than detailed facial features. Body Language & Interaction Their relationship is conveyed almost entirely through gesture, stance, and proximity, creating a sense of intimacy, tension, and sly innuendo. The dialogue between their bodies is elegant and understated, relying on posture rather than overt dramatics. Background (Minimal but Chic) Faint sketch lines suggest a tufted sofa behind the figures. A standing lamp is lightly indicated, framing the space. The room conveys a stylish London sitting room without clutter or heavy detailing — minimal, elegant, and suggestive. Palette & Style Restrained washes of crimson, pale cream, warm amber, and sepia neutrals dominate the composition. The watercolor is applied in light, gestural washes, supporting the bold ink contours. The illustration evokes the economy, wit, and refinement of mid-century fashion illustration, where suggestion carries more weight than detail. Atmosphere The mood is quiet, sophisticated, and subtly charged. The interplay of spill, bourbon glass, and leaning gesture creates mischief and innuendo, while still maintaining the refined elegance of fashion sketch aesthetics. The overall effect is that of a cinematic, intimate snapshot from a vintage magazine illustration — stylish, expressive, and suggestive.
3. Crimson and Ivory (Glass in Hand)
Ink and watercolor, mid-century fashion mode
Here, Maxine stands in crimson, Margot leaning toward her in ivory — the color contrast heightening the tension between confidence and vulnerability. The drink in Maxine’s hand recalls cocktail-hour glamour, yet her posture conveys command, not passivity. It is an image that crystallizes power, poise, and the shifting gender dynamics of mid-century theatre reimagined.

What might once have been played as a polite aside was reframed here as flirtation, as intimacy hidden in plain sight. The stain became pretext, the dress became subtext, and the bourbon-spill moment crystallized the electric charge between the two women — a reminder that suspense lives not just in murder plots, but in glances, gestures, and the words left hanging in the air.

A horizontal mid-century fashion sketch–style illustration set in a modest London flat, created in the style of a vintage fashion plate. The illustration emphasizes elongated proportions, bold gestural ink linework, and soft muted watercolor washes, echoing the aesthetic of 1950s and 1960s magazine art. Foreground Figures Maxine Early 40s, striking and confident, consistent with her established appearance. She wears a crimson cocktail dress, sleek and figure-hugging, highlighted with stylized elegance. Her posture is poised yet softened with intimacy, leaning toward Margot. Her hands are relaxed, expressive only through posture, not through props. Margot Early 40s, graceful and playful, consistent with her established look. She wears a black dress, understated yet striking, forming a visual contrast with Maxine’s crimson attire. She leans in close, one arm encircling Maxine’s waist, the other gently guiding her arm downward in a subtle, affectionate gesture. Their lips meet in a delicate kiss, body language expressing warmth, intimacy, and sly innuendo without the need for detailed facial features. Background & Setting Tony Positioned outside the window, sharply dressed in a tailored dark suit. His face is tense and his gaze fixed inward, his posture rigid, framed by the window’s mullions. His presence establishes a sense of voyeurism, control, and judgment, casting tension over the intimacy inside. Interior of the Flat Golden tufted sofa sketched with suggestion in the background. A small table holds a carafe, glasses, and a plate of spaghetti, grounding the scene with domestic realism. A lamp casts warm light, illuminating the interior in soft sepia tones. Faint sketch lines of framed artwork add subtle texture to the walls without detracting from the central figures. Palette & Style A restrained color palette of deep crimson, black, pale cream, warm amber, and sepia neutrals. Bold, gestural ink strokes define the figures, while elongated proportions emphasize elegance. Muted watercolor washes create atmosphere, cinematic shading, and warmth. Mood & Atmosphere The scene is cinematic, intimate, and subtly charged. Maxine and Margot’s closeness conveys love, tenderness, and playful innuendo. Tony’s presence outside the window introduces an unsettling element of voyeurism and obsession, reframing the intimacy as something observed and judged. The illustration balances the expressive elegance of fashion illustration with narrative tension, making it feel like a mid-century magazine tableau of love and surveillance.
4. The Window (Tony’s Suspicion)
Ink and wash with domestic detail
Tony’s voyeuristic gaze through the window reframes his jealousy as obsession. Inside, Maxine and Margot’s kiss radiates warmth and defiance, grounded by the mundane presence of spaghetti on the table. This juxtaposition — intimacy versus intrusion, love versus control — sharpens the play’s psychological edge.

Another telling moment came when Tony confided to Lesgate about spying on Margot. He revealed that she had gone to Maxine’s flat, and that he had once caught them in each other’s arms — a disclosure that reframed Tony’s jealousy not just as a husband’s suspicion, but as a twisted obsession with control. What might have been played as casual backstory in other productions became a pointed reminder: Tony’s cruelty was sharpened by the knowledge of Margot’s real love. The break, he said, came after a spaghetti dinner — an oddly domestic detail that made their intimacy feel all the more real.

Archival Note: When Dial M for Murder first appeared in 1952 (and in Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 film with Grace Kelly), women’s agency was minimized, their desires made scandalous. In both Knott’s original text and Hitchcock’s film, Margot was written as having an affair with a man. Seen in 2025 — a year where representation is under sharper focus — this staging feels like reclamation. It honors the mechanics of the original thriller, but lets women (rightfully) own the story in a way the mid-century never allowed.

The Cast Connections

A horizontal mid-century fashion sketch–style illustration depicting four figures posed as an ensemble, framed as a repertory troupe. The illustration is rendered in vintage fashion plate style with elongated proportions, bold gestural ink linework, and soft muted watercolor washes. On the left, Tom Walton (as Tony Wendice) stands in a dark tailored suit, arms crossed, his stance ambiguous and calculating. Beside him, Mark Schwahn (as Inspector Hubbard) is upright and inquisitive, wearing a trench coat and homburg hat, one hand gesturing as if mid-investigation. Next, Ariel Puls (as Margot Wendice) sits elegantly in a turquoise dress, her posture warm and graceful, leaning subtly toward Maxine. On the right, Kelsey Glasser (as Maxine Hadley) stands confident in a sleek red cocktail dress, holding a glass of bourbon in her hand. Each figure’s pose conveys character: suspicion, authority, intimacy, and composure, highlighting the repertory theatre connection between them. The atmosphere evokes a repertory theatre poster. Behind the figures, faint sketch lines suggest stage curtains and theatrical lights, framing them in a stylized performance setting without overwhelming detail. The palette is restrained yet vibrant: deep red, turquoise, pale cream, muted blacks, warm sepia neutrals, and soft golden washes. The mood is cinematic and stylish, balancing playful innuendo with suspenseful distance, suggesting both the farce of comedy and the taut suspense of thriller. The overall effect is elegant, sophisticated, and evocative of a repertory company’s shared theatrical history.
5. Ensemble (The Repertory Continuity)
Ink and wash, group tableau
The production’s repertory depth is embodied in this tableau: Tony, Inspector Hubbard, Margot, and Maxine together in a single frame. Familiar faces reappear in new guises, underscoring the continuity of regional theatre. The women, however, command the eye — their presence reframing the narrative’s center of gravity.

One of the joys of regional repertory theatre is watching familiar faces return in new guises. This production drew richness from precisely that shared history — the actors carried with them echoes of past roles, creating layers of recognition and reinvention that made this staging of Dial M for Murder feel both freshly alive and firmly rooted in tradition.

Tom Walton (Tony Wendice) and Mark Schwahn (Inspector Hubbard) had just played Sherlock Holmes and John Watson, M.D. in Clackamas Repertory’s season opener, Sherlock Holmes and the Precarious Position — a play also set in London, written by Margaret Raether.

An atmospheric, cinematic noir realism oil painting of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. John Watson in late 19th-century London. Holmes: Tall and lean, dressed in a dark Inverness cape draped dramatically over his shoulders. He wears a deerstalker hat tilted forward, holding a curved pipe in one hand. His posture is angular and alert, with his head tilted slightly as if analyzing a clue. His piercing gaze is illuminated by a shaft of lamplight cutting through the fog. Watson: Sturdy and reliable, standing beside Holmes. He wears a bowler hat and a neatly buttoned wool coat, carrying a doctor’s leather bag in one hand. Unlike traditional depictions, he is clean-shaven, without a moustache, but maintains the same steady, composed, and wary demeanor. His face conveys quiet strength and seriousness. Setting: A fog-shrouded London street at night. Slick cobblestones glisten under the glow of a wrought-iron gaslamp, casting golden light that cuts across the heavy shadows. In the background, the hazy silhouettes of hansom cabs and brick rowhouses fade into misty obscurity. Palette & Style: Muted and atmospheric colors: deep grays, blacks, earthy browns, accented with sharp highlights of golden lamplight. Painterly brushstrokes with chiaroscuro contrasts, emphasizing light and shadow. The overall aesthetic evokes the gothic allure of Victorian London with a cinematic noir tone. Mood: Suspenseful, intellectual, and gothic. Holmes as the restless seeker of deduction; Watson as the steadfast companion — a duo caught in a moment of mystery, poised at the threshold of discovery. Format: Horizontal, cinematic composition.
Holmes & Watson, fogbound (oil-painting mode)
Digital oil study after Victorian portraiture, 2025
Here Holmes and Watson are rendered with painterly gravity, their silhouettes emerging from the gaslit haze of London streets. The image evokes academic portraiture — the solemn tradition of Victorian moral drama — yet its placement within the archive is sly. These same actors, seen moments before in comic pandemonium, are reframed as icons of seriousness and atmosphere. The juxtaposition with farce highlights repertory as an art of transformation: one season, one company, conjuring entirely different worlds through the same faces.

Earlier this same year, Walton and Schwahn also appeared together in the farce Noises Off for Lakewood Theater Company, with Walton as Gary Lejeune and Schwahn as Frederick Fellowes. That continuity made the production feel like an inversion: Watson investigating Holmes gone astray — loyalty giving way to betrayal.

Ariel Puls (Margot Wendice) brought incredible complexity to the role of Margot, a wealthy woman torn between her dull, respectable marriage with Tom (maintained to please a deceased, unmarried rich aunt) and her deep, true feelings for Maxine in a world not open to two women being lovers.

That complexity immediately drew the audience’s sympathy. Puls, a Portland, Oregon native who describes herself on her website (as of 2025) as “an avid Shakespeare fan” with her acting “rooted in classical theatre, movement-informed performance, and new play development,” also appeared in Noises Off as Poppy Norton-Taylor, sharing the stage once again with Walton and Schwahn.

A horizontal fashion sketch–style illustration of three characters from Noises Off, drawn with elongated proportions, fluid brushstrokes, and mid-century fashion illustration aesthetics, set amid farcical backstage chaos with doors and a staircase. Poppy: Frazzled stage manager, shown running forward in a panicked pose. She has a messy bun with loose strands flying out, and a headset slipping off her head. She clutches a red clipboard to her chest while cue sheets scatter around her in the air like abstract shapes. She wears a peach sweater, teal trousers, and flats, with her outfit rendered in loose sketchy lines and watercolor washes. Her wide-eyed, anxious expression emphasizes her frantic energy. Gary (as Sherlock Holmes parody): Tall, angular, and dramatically over-posed. He is dressed in a stylized, sketchy Victorian coat with flowing lines and wears a deerstalker hat. He is positioned mid-stride on a staircase, pointing his finger as if declaring a deduction, though exaggerated for comic effect. His elongated proportions and angular features emphasize the chic, parody fashion-sketch aesthetic. Frederick (as Dr. Watson parody): Shorter, sturdy posture, wearing a bowler hat but no moustache. His clothing is a simplified beige-gray suit drawn in gestural strokes. He is positioned near a swinging door, holding onto the doorframe with one hand and leaning back slightly, his expression anxious and confused. His pose adds to the farce-like energy of the scene. Setting: A stylized stage set, sketched in gestural ink-and-wash strokes: Swinging doors drawn mid-motion, some ajar, some slamming shut. A staircase rising diagonally across the frame, with Gary climbing it. Simplified stage architecture — doorframes, banisters, and angled walls — suggested with minimal abstract lines. Style & Palette: Ink-and-watercolor wash with gestural, fluid lines. Muted pastel tones (cream, peach, teal, gray) accented with bold pops of red and black. Background is minimal, focusing on the sense of motion and farce rather than detailed realism. Mood: Playful and witty, capturing the backstage chaos of Noises Off while parodying Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson, all filtered through the elegant exaggeration of a mid-century fashion sketch. Format: Horizontal illustration.
Comic chaos sketch (Holmes collides with farce)
Ink and wash illustration, anonymous digital atelier, 2025
This whimsical sketch reimagines Sherlock Holmes not in the fog of Baker Street but in the manic corridors of farce. The stage manager — headset, clipboard, perpetual motion — becomes the unseen heroine of repertory theatre, chasing after mysteries with the same urgency she wrangles missed cues and misplaced trousers. Its style deliberately echoes mid-century caricature posters, situating the players in a world of constant entrances and exits. Within the archive, the image functions as connective tissue: a reminder that actors pivoting from chaos to suspense embody the repertory’s multiverse of roles.

Seeing Puls, Walton, and Schwahn pivot from the comic chaos of farce to the taut suspense of a thriller highlighted the range and adaptability that define regional theatre. The shift — from doors slamming and trousers dropping to blackmail and betrayal — felt like a repertory multiverse in motion, farce reconfigured as thriller. For audiences tracking both companies, it became more than connective tissue; it was a reminder of repertory’s greatest gift: that one door always leads to another — sometimes to laughter, sometimes to danger.

Kelsey Glasser (Maxine Hadley) brought her own distinction. Not only is she a gifted actor, but offstage she is a Portland, Oregon sommelier, host of Her Way, a podcast featuring interviews with women in the wine industry, and the owner of Arden, a wine-focused restaurant in downtown Portland. That blend of artistry — theatre and hospitality — lent Glasser’s Maxine a worldly sophistication, making the character feel lived-in, confident, and grounded.

Archival Note: Glasser’s dual presence in both the performing arts and Portland’s hospitality scene situates Maxine not only as a character within the play, but as part of the city’s living cultural fabric.

These casting echoes didn’t overshadow the story; they enriched it. For those who’ve followed Oregon theatre, the crossovers and hidden layers made Dial M for Murder feel at once a self-contained drama and part of a larger cultural fabric.

Why It Belongs in the Archive

6. Behind the Scene: A Woman’s Direction
Fashion sketch, imagined rehearsal for Dial M for Murder
Here, the composition shifts from performance to process. A woman director — drawn in crisp slacks, glasses, and scarf — gestures with authority, sketch pencil still in hand. Before her, Margot and Maxine sit together, whiskey glasses poised, their attention not on the script’s treacheries but on her vision.
The illustration reframes Dial M not as a thriller of male orchestration but as a production sculpted by women’s voices. The staging hand is female; the story belongs to its actresses. What might have been rendered as spectacle becomes a rehearsal of power — collaboration, listening, trust.
The sepia-washed palette grounds the image in mid-century style, yet its insistence on showing the woman director at work underscores a contemporary truth: theatre, like this sketch, is made as much in the hands of women as in their portrayals.

Taken together, this production was more than a clever revival. It was a story owned by women, guided by a woman’s hand, and framed by theatrical continuities that made the performance feel like part of a living repertory. That combination makes it not only memorable, but indispensable to preserve.

This production offered a triple: repertory echoes (Holmes/Watson fractured into Tony/Hubbard, cast carried over from Noises Off), thematic inversions (farce into thriller, loyalty into betrayal), and feminist reclamation (Margot and Maxine’s kiss, their love acknowledged).

Even the coats by the door — Maxine’s black, Margot’s cream — stood as proof of their bond. A moment too rich to fade.

What made this production unforgettable wasn’t the murder or the clever mechanics, but the way Margot and Maxine carried the heart of the story. That is why it belongs in my archive.

Some productions leave you entertained; others leave you with memories worth preserving. This one left me with both — and a record worth archiving.

Archival Meta Note: I’m not a professional archivist, but I approach these productions with an archivist’s care. These notes are my way of preserving not only what I saw on stage, but why it mattered — as memory, as culture, and as a record of care. In that choice, the archive becomes not just a record of art, but a record of care.