RUMFORD — RAAPA is bringing back the popular Murder Mystery Dinner Theater. This year’s play is called “Death of a Hot Sauce Salesman” and will be performed Friday and Saturday, May 25 and 26, at the Eagles, 129 Rumford Ave.

RAAPA is holding auditions at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 6, at the Rumford Public Library. All enthusiastic actors in the area are encouraged to try out for one of 12 roles, six female, six male. Scripts will be available for perusal at the Rumford Public Library starting Thursday, Jan 25. Persons who cannot attend the audition may contact the director, Connie Venskus, for a private audition by calling 207-357-5300.

As in past productions, the RAAPA Chorus will perform a variety of songs in an entertaining Entre Act under the direction of Gail Dorr. Anyone interested in joining the chorus should contact Mary Pulsifer at 207-562-7050 to reserve a music folder.

“Death of a Hot Sauce Salesman,” written by Michael Druce, involves the fate of Prescott Knight, owner of the Hot Knights Pepper Sauce empire, who discovers someone is trying to kill him. A family meeting is hastily arranged, and Prescott announces he is changing his will so that the recipe for Hot Knights Pepper Sauce will pass into the right hands.

Hours later, family members find Prescott dead and the recipe stolen. Prescott’s family, his lawyer, the housekeeper and the gardener are all suspects. With the help of audience members, who have been given clue packets, Judge Titus Drumm slowly unravels this spicy comedy filled with zany characters, outrageous lines and plenty of hot sauce.

The roles available, with approximate age of character, are:

• Sassy, 60s, overworked, underappreciated maid;

• Fester Boyle, 60s, Prescott’s sleazy attorney;

• Shiloh Devereaux, 20s, Prescott’s older granddaughter;

• Magnolia Devereaux, 20s, Prescott’s younger, naïve granddaughter;

• Brick Tarmac, 20s, dim-witted cowboy, engaged to Magnolia;

• Sue Rae DuKane, 50s, Prescott’s daughter;

• W.C. DuKane, 50s, Sue Rae’s husband;

• Juan Any, one-eyed gardener;

• Prescott Knight, 80s, family patriarch and owner of Hot Knight’s Pepper Sauce;

• Pepper Devine, 30s, youthful fiancé of Prescott Knight;

• Helen Knight, 70s, Prescott’s ex-wife; and

• Judge Titus Drumm, 70s, local judge and friend of Prescott Knight.

These Murdered Mystery productions have become a new annual tradition of the RAAPA group and are fun to produce. For anyone who has ever wanted to test their skill at acting, this would be a good place to start. The size of each role ranges from characters with 23 lines to 93 lines, so there is something for everyone. 

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