FARMINGTON — As cast member Julian Thompson put it, “A charming and comedic romp through a traditional whodunit,” will be enjoyed by all attending Mt. Blue Theater Company’s (MBTC) rendition of The Musical Comedy Murders of 1940.
The play, written by John Bishop, will be staged at 7 p.m. on May 7, 8, and 9 in the Bjorn Auditorium on the Mt. Blue Campus. Tickets are $4.50 for adults and $3 for students. The play isn’t a musical but is about a musical and features some original music by Brendan Hickey!
The story takes place around 1940 in the estate of an eccentric, wealthy “angel” who will be backing the upcoming musical produced by the very same creative team whose last production ended with the murders of three show girls by the “Stage Door Slasher.” As the show opens in the midst of a raging snowstorm, Elsa Von Grossenknueten (Emma Haywood) is seen plotting with a somewhat bumbling detective (Josh Winters) to discover the truth about the murders.
Staging an audition in her avant-garde home, she invites the very same director (Julian Thomson), producer (Desiree Sirois), composer (Brendan Hickey), and lyricist (Julia Lowell) as well some lesser known actors/singers/comedians (Greg Baxter, Gracie Libby, and Jacob Rutberg) to set a trap for the “Slasher.” The killer does indeed strike again and again and again, and possibly again.
But who is the killer? The director with a supercilious affinity for the theater? The young innocent chorus girl? The incredibly struggling comedian? Or the German maid (Drew Crockett) who seems to be everywhere at once? To find out, you’ll need to attend one of the shows!
Director Deborah Muise says this play is one of the more sophisticated shows the Mt. Blue Theater Company has produced in a while. She loved it when she searched Google looking for potential plays for high school students and discovered this play. It involves the use of prop weapons, stage fighting, and simulated murders, and incorporates some mature themes and situations (rated PG 13). Muise said the play isn’t appropriate for young children.
The overall effect is a witty, irreverent, high-spirited romp, satirizing murder mysteries in the style of Clue. New York Magazine calls it, “the intelligent person’s kind of nonsense.”
With Julianna Labul, Natalie Wood, Alex Haggan, Sam MacDonald, and Alan Sherrod as the student “techies,” MBTC’s production of this outrageous comedy is certain to “slay” you.
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