SALT LAKE CITY — Salt Lake Acting Company offers a warm and welcoming environment with their current production, the regional premiere of Murder Ballad. Originally opening off-Broadway in 2012 and featuring Utah native Will Swenson, Murder Ballad is a rock musical with a book and lyrics by Julia Jordan and music and lyrics by Juliana Nash. Under the adept direction of Cynthia Fleming, Murder Ballad is a fun, fresh, and exceedingly sexy musical – driven by upbeat, edgy rock music and a thrilling element of lingering suspense.
Murder Ballad explores complex emotional themes of desire, jealousy, rage, regret and heartache through the lens of complicated, passionate relationships. The story follows a young woman named Sara (Collette Astle), her bartender boyfriend Tom (Gray Aydelott), and Michael (M. Scott McLean), a professor. After Sara and Tom’s intense relationship implodes, she attempts a more stable life with Michael, eventually marrying him and starting a family. As the years pass and typical relationship struggles set in, Sara begins to long for her carefree past. When she reconnects with Tom, the resulting love triangle spirals into a messy and unexpected murder. The show exposes many realities of romantic love, everything that makes it “hurt so good… and bad.”
As a fully sung-through rock opera with no spoken dialogue, the music drives the narrative. A Narrator, played by Latoya Cameron, provides most of the exposition, allowing the other characters to lean fully into the emotional depth of their songs. Under the musical direction of David Evanoff, the talented cast of performers and singers proves essential to the show’s success. Each brings an intensity that helps the non-traditional score come to life. Reminiscent of other rock musicals, not every original song is a standout, but the cast’s energy more than compensates for weaker moments. Led by an accomplished live band with members Evanoff (keyboard), Mark D. Maxson (guitar), Davin Tayler (bass) and Kendall White (drums), a grungy rock ‘n’ roll undercurrent permeates every aspect of the production.
Murder Ballad is perfectly cast, featuring top-tier performances and stellar vocals. Cameron is a terrific Narrator with a strong, flawless voice that remains consistently on point. Her performance of “Clubs and Diamonds,” where she gets to be more expressive, is a particular highlight. Aydelott’s remarkable voice makes him phenomenal as Tom. Astle, also an exceptional singer, matches him vocally and their voices blend together beautifully. More importantly, the two have fantastic chemistry and undeniable heat. Astle brings a confident allure to Sara, while also conveying vulnerability and grief when needed. As Michael, McLean provides a grounded counterbalance to Aydelott, building believable chemistry with Astle while establishing a distinctly different dynamic from her relationship with Tom. All of the actors are captivating and expressive, allowing emotions to shine through their voices, faces, and physicality, making it easy to be swept up in their spicy relationships.
Erik Reichert’s simple, bar-like set design works well within the small theatre, creating an intimate and engaging atmosphere. The abundance of liquor bottles lining the shelves and a pool table that cleverly doubles as furniture are nice touches. David DeCarolis’s predominantly red lighting design sets the tone of passion and violence, while flashes of bright blue light add dynamic tension in key moments. The choreography, also by Fleming, along with fight and intimacy direction by Adriana Lemke, heightens the energy and results in compelling, sensual staging.
I appreciated the cheeky, meta quality of the finale, which cleverly highlights our human fascination with murder and true crime. From the first number, the Narrator tells us that someone must die, inviting the audience to lean into the “whodunit” intrigue. By the end, this dramatically staged but fictional story feels uncomfortably familiar, underscoring how ordinary such tragedies can be. The lyric “It’s all entertainment, unless it happens to you,” reframes the show’s electrifying energy as something far more sobering: a cautionary tale about the stories we consume for thrill. And yet, as the cast sang the lyrics, “hope we’ve satisfied you,” it was clear that they had. I left fully pleased, fulfilled, and impressed by the production’s boldness and execution. While rock musicals in general may not be everyone’s cup of tea, Murder Ballad is undeniably well done and worth seeing, especially for those willing to embrace its edgy, provocative style.
MORE INFO: Murder Ballad runs April 8 – May 3, 2026 at Salt Lake Acting Company (168 W 500 N, Salt Lake City, UT 84103). Tickets are $45. For the most up-to-date schedule, performance details, and official ticketing, visit the Salt Lake Acting Company website: https://saltlakeactingcompany.org/