One of the most shadowy characters, and the one who seems most interested in assisting Poirot, is Helen Hubbard. Chanhassen Dinner Theatres regular Michelle Barber - decades younger than those women and, as an American, not eligible to be a dame - tackles the role at the Guthrie. Dench's was a more emotional portrayal, as was (Dame, natch) Eileen Atkins' in the 2010 PBS version. Hiller had more fun with the role of a wealthy royal, traveling with a hen-pecked companion and so above the rest of the shenanigans on the train that she barely expends the effort required to move her mouth when she speaks. It's a part that attracts dames, as in Dame Wendy Hiller and Dame Judi Dench. Andrew May makes his Guthrie debut as Poirot but local theater audiences may remember him in the tour of 'War Horse,' in which the Star Tribune pronounced his performance 'gorgeous.' A flashy Belgian with a huge, meticulously groomed mustache, the character attracts actors who enjoy going big, such as David Suchet (who played him in the 2010 PBS version and the 'Poirot' series), Albert Finney (an Oscar nominee for his 1974 performance) and Kenneth Branagh, who starred in and directed the 2017 remake.

In Christie's novels, vain Poirot always considers himself the most important character but he's right in this case, since he's the only one who interacts with everyone else. And virtually every role is juicy since, other than detective Hercule Poirot, most of the characters must make an indelible impression in just a couple of scenes. Virtually all the characters in the drama - which takes place in the 1930s on a ritzy, snowbound train and that was loosely inspired by the aftermath of the kidnapping of Minnesota native Charles Lindbergh's infant - are wealthy.

That means the 10 actors in the Guthrie Theater's 'Orient Express,' which opens Friday, have big shoes to fill.

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