Killer Dolphin
| Industry | Theatre |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | London , United Kingdom |
Death at the Dolphin is a detective novel authored by Ngaio Marsh, marking the twenty-fourth installment featuring the detective Roderick Alleyn. Originally released in 1966 under the title Killer Dolphin in the United States, the storyline revolves around a glove once belonging to Hamnet Shakespeare, exhibited at a recently refurbished theatre named the Dolphin. Several characters from this novel reappear in Marsh's concluding work, Light Thickens.
Inspiration
According to biographer Margaret Lewis, the refurbishment of the Dolphin Theatre draws inspiration from an episode during Marsh's 1949-51 residence in London, when she accompanied Tyrone Guthrie to inspect a bomb-ruined theatre he intended to restore for Shakespearean performances as part of the Festival of Britain.
Bruce Harding proposes that Peregrine Jay, a New Zealander who attains theatrical acclaim in England, was modeled after Marsh’s protégés Jonathan Elsom, Elric Hooper, and James Laurenson. Harding also notes parallels between Jeremy Jones’s joint management of a London shop and Marsh’s own brief "experiment in shopkeeping" alongside Nelly Rhodes.
Awards and nominations
In 1967, the novel was shortlisted for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Novel but ultimately lost to Nicholas Freeling's The King of the Rainy Country.
Plot
Ambitious theatre director Peregrine Jay uncovers the neglected Victorian Dolphin Theatre located on London’s South Bank. After accidentally falling into a wartime bomb crater on stage, he is saved by Vassily Conducis, a wealthy theatre proprietor who agrees to fund Jay’s plans to restore the venue. The theatre’s reopening showcases Jay’s play The Glove, inspired by a cheveril glove owned by Conducis, said to have been crafted for Shakespeare’s son Hamnet.
The glove quickly becomes a sensation and generates substantial publicity. Despite conflicts within Jay’s gifted but volatile company, the production achieves success. However, during its sold-out performances, the glove is stolen and nightwatchman Harry Jobbins is viciously murdered near one of two dolphin statues commissioned by Conducis. Furthermore, the young actor portraying Hamnet suffers a violent assault and narrowly escapes death.
Inspector Roderick Alleyn, initially assigned to safeguard the glove, takes charge of the inquiry. His investigation uncovers that cast member W. Hartley Grove is blackmailing Conducis and exposes how Conducis came into possession of the Shakespearean glove.
This murder investigation unfolds alongside an intricate depiction of reviving a historic London theatre and launching a Shakespeare-themed contemporary play to West End acclaim amid backstage tensions and rivalries.
Reception
Edmund Crispin writing for The Sunday Times commended it as "a first-rate book, with an enticing opening, a fine whodunit plot and exceptional richness in characterisation, background and humour. Don't miss it on any account."
Maurice Richardson of The Observer remarked on its "ingenious manipulations of Shakespearean relics" combined with a well-constructed murder narrative that upholds the author’s intelligent standards.
Violet Grant from The Daily Telegraph called it "Manna for bardophils, with authentic stage background."
In The Illustrated London News, Marsh’s return to her theatrical roots was praised for its vivid backstage portrayal and memorable ensemble surrounding Alleyn and Fox.