Rebecca Northan & Bruce Horak’s company Spontaneous Theatre make some of the most dependably enjoyable theatre in Canada. Incredible technicians with creative minds for concept and format, their work is consistently sharp and unique. Their improv formats- notably Blind Date and the whodunnit structure in use here- have, built in, a bit of a risk that makes it impossible to guarantee the quality of any given performance but Murder-on-the-Lake is a fun programming curveball that adds lively dimension and skillset diversity to the Shaw season.

At each performance, an audience member is chosen to play the leading role of the detective tasked with solving a murder that took place a year ago at a local B&B (a B&B with decor strikingly similar to the Tons of Money set; an unexpected repurposing that I’m happy to tolerate if it means those savings keep the design budget hearty for other productions). The murder is the same every show but most of the ensemble picks their roles at random from a pre-set cast of characters. The effect is fun and fresh as the ever-changing dynamics mean that any given performance has a new combination of romances and conflicts (gender isn’t involved in the role randomization so it’s probable that every performance has at least one LGBTQ pairing).

With corsets and accents the norm in the high art trappings of The Shaw Festival, it may be tempting to undervalue something like Murder-on-the-Lake that is, in its very nature, very casual and pretty silly. But what’s so special about this programming is how it expands the scope of expertise on display at a festival that thrives on being the best at what they do. Traditionally, that’s meant that these are the actors in the world best at performing the work of George Bernard Shaw. Let’s not get into whether that’s actually true anymore. But, in the absence of that certainly, I can really get behind showcasing the best of the best across the theatrical arts- the best wig makers, the best tap dancers, the best guy for jumping over couches comically- and that absolutely applies to Northan and Horak, the very best improvisers bringing the best of their medium to Shaw audiences. Don’t take that for granted. This isn’t filler programming, this is world class.