MS. HOLMES & MS. WATSON – APT. 2B

Dark Comedy

by KATE HAMILL

An irreverent, darkly comic, modern take on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s famous sleuth and sidekick, this fast-paced romp re-examines the world’s most famous detective story with a bold new feminist lens. In this highly theatrical, small-cast escapade, oddball female roommates Sherlock (yes, it’s also a girl’s name—wait, is it a girl’s name? Is it even a name?) Holmes & Joan Watson join forces to emerge from pandemic fog as a deeply codependent, quasi-dysfunctional Odd Couple adventure duo—solving mysteries and kicking butts, until they come face to face with a villain who seems to have all of the answers.

Production Notes

CASTING:

3F, 1M (doubling)

SHERLOCK HOLMES / as cast (30s-40s): female-identifying. A once-in-a-generation genius. Eccentric. Focused, to a fault. Can be less-than-sensitive. Always playing psychological 3-D chess; operating on a totally different level than civilians. Like many geniuses, has a megalomaniac streak. Gets bored easily; likes applause; sometimes accused of being unfeeling. LOVES costumes and drama.

DR. JOAN WATSON / as cast (30s-40s): female-identifying. American. Formerly type-A high-achiever. Recently divorced; struggling to find herself, feels broken. Reflexively defensive. Once had great bedside manner. Sometimes accused of being a loser; is not a loser. Wry. Smart.

IRENE ADLER / MRS. HUDSON / MRS. DREBBER /as cast (late 20s-40s): female-identifying.Irene Adler: a whip-smart, super-charming sex worker finding success at the highest levels. Always playing psychological 3-D chess; operating on a totally different level than civilians. Has incredible charm, confidence, and wit, and she knows it—uses it without mercy. You may want to be Irene, or you may want to be with Irene; but you can’t ignore her.Mrs. Hudson: Holmes & Watson’s long-suffering landlady.Mrs. Drebber: seemingly an ordinary housewife. Somebody you would be very wise not to underestimate. 

MORIARTY / LESTRADE / ELLIOT MONK / as cast (30s-50s): male-identifying.Moriarty: a criminal so great you’ve never heard of him. A master blackmailer; knows just when to play his cards. Always playing psychological 3-D chess; operating on a different level than civilians. Wears many masks. A professional. Amoral, but you’d like him. Lestrade: an inspector new to his position at Scotland Yard. Not very imaginative. Often says the wrong thing.Elliot Monk: an amoral tech billionaire from Texas.

"Oh, to shake the dust from an old classic and polish it into a fresh, hip and uproarious good time. Kate, Kate, Kate. How did you do it, honey? Ms. Holmes and Ms. Watson – #2B, written by Kate Hamill and starring Hamill as Watson with Vaishnavi Sharma as Sherlock Holmes world premieres a bloody good gender-bent mur-der whodunit." -Lonita Cook, BlackBeeBuzz.com, on the recent KCRep production

Photo credits: Jason O’Connell, Vanessa Severo, Vaishnavi Sharma, and Kate Hamill in the world premiere of MS. HOLMES AND MS. WATSON – Apt. 2B at KCRep. Photo by Don Ipock.

Author

Kate Hamill

Playwright of the Year, 2017 - Wall Street Journal

One of the most-produced playwrights in America for 3 seasons running (2017-2020); wrote 2 of the top 10 most-produced plays of 2017-2018 and 2018-2019

"inventive" - Ben Brantley, New York Times

"ingenious" - Terry Teachout, Wall Street Journal

“dauntless” - The New Yorker

Kate Hamill's plays have been produced off-Broadway (with Primary Stages, Classic Stage Company, Bedlam, and the Pearl); at Oregon Shakespeare Festival, A.R.T., the Guthrie, ...[FULL BIO]