‘Murdoch Mysteries’ Gets Musical! Sneak Peek at Period Drama’s Special Episode (VIDEO)
Murdoch Mysteries may be 17 seasons in, but it can still find ways to do something new. And in this case, that means a musical episode! TV Insider has an exclusive sneak peek at the event.
The episode, “Why Is Everybody Singing?” may not be airing until April 6 on Ovation in the U.S., but it will be debuting on March 25 on CBC in Canada. It was written by Paul Aitken and directed by Laurie Lynd.
In the episode, while pursuing a missing man now presumed dead, Murdoch (Yannick Bisson) takes a call that alters his perception of the world. After heading into a lively alley, he’s shot in the head and left for dead. Crabtree (Jonny Harris) and Higgins (Lachlan Murdoch) find him with the faintest pulse clinging to life. As Brackenreid (Thomas Craig), Ogden (Hélène Joy), Watts (Daniel Maslany), and Hart (Shanice Banton) rush to the scene and the constables question a newsboy, beggar, vendors and other witnesses, Murdoch hears their inquiries in song. The musical accounts swoop and soar, confounding the detective who can’t understand why everyone around him is singing instead of focusing on who shot him. Watch the sneak peek above
“Preserving the integrity of the show has always been super important to me so when there was talk of doing a musical episode, it was no secret that I had reservations,” Bisson said. “Having Paul Aitken, our writer, as an ally for so many years and having been in the musical trenches before with Laurie Lynd as a director, I felt confident to proceed. All my worrying was for nothing though – the end result is nothing short of spectacular!”
Added Lynd, “A musical episode of Murdoch Mysteries seemed wonderfully inevitable: Helene Joy (Dr. Ogden) had long wanted to do a musical episode, as had our Executive Producers, Christina Jennings and Peter Mitchell, and most importantly, as did our writer, lyricist and composer — Paul Aitken. The final push is thanks to fans of the show, who have consistently said a musical episode is something they would most love to see.”
“The script that Paul Aitken wrote is so clever because it is still at heart a classic Murdoch episode, a puzzling case to be solved that is not at all what it first appears to be,” Lynd continued. “The great joy of the episode, of course, is seeing — and hearing! — our favourite Murdoch characters sing. All of the cast did their own singing, beautifully elevating the emotions of what their characters were expressing.”
Murdoch Mysteries, Saturdays, 7/6c, Ovation
