Murdered to Death

Cedar County Theatre

Murdered to Death

by Peter Gordon
http://www.petergordonplays.com

Performance dates are:

Friday, October 29, 2004, at 7:00 p.m.
Saturday, October 30, 2004, at 7:00 p.m.
Thursday, November 4, 2004, at 7:00 p.m.
Friday, November 5, 2004, at 7:00 p.m.

at the Hartington City Auditorium

Produced by special permission from Dramatists Play Services, Inc.

Click here for photos

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A hilarious spoof of the best of the Agatha Christie traditions, this star-studded whodunnitt twists and turns with side-splitting antics and ever-increasing merriment and confusion.

Set in a country manor house in the glorious 1930’s, the colorful cast of characters guaranteed to delight include – Bunting the Butler; Colonel Charles Craddock with the prerequisite stiff upper lip, the bumbling local inspector and his Constable; and a well meaning local sleuth Miss Maple who seems to attract murder wherever she goes. Add to this a high society debutante, a shady French art dealer and his moll, and supporting cast, and you have the perfect recipe for uproarious fun and hysterical happenings. But following the mysterious death of the house’s owner, will the murderer be unmasked before every one else has met their doom, or will the audience die laughing first?

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CAST OF CHARACTERS

CHARACTER	ACTOR	BIOGRAPHY
MILDRED BAGSHOT The Lady of the Manor	Lynn Kathol	The Cedar County Theatre has captured my interest and have had a role in every performance from its inception (thus far). It's been great fun! I think I plan to continue. (We hope that Lynn will consider directing a production)
DOROTHY FOXTON Mildred's Niece	Crystal Lenzen	I've participated in plays and speech in high school and college. Have been involved in productions in Bow Valley and was a dance hall girl in "How the West Was Fun." Enjoy being in the productions and getting to know new people. Presently employed by the City of Hartington. Married to Ray for 37 years. We enjoy time with our children and grand children.
BUNTING The Butler	Lee Carl	I finally agreed to be in a production after spending all the rest of them behind the scenes. I acted in all the plays in high school but haven't done any acting since I have had the best time "cebrelating" at practices. I hope you enjoy my performance. Non! Oui!
COL. CHARLES CRADDOCK Friend to Mildred	Robert Bryan	Hi, I'm Bob Bryan, aka Charles Craddock, Colonel (Ret.). Hartington is my new home, coming from Chicago with my family to accept a call as pastor of Trinity Lutheran Church. Before my new life as a pastor, I managed an arts & crafts warehouse in Chicago, IL. Past performances in community theater include "Bye, Bye, Birdie" and "Hello, Dolly." I also taught and performed American Clog Dancing with the Champagne Urbane Boneyard Creek Cloggers.
MARGARET CRADDOCK Married to the Colonel	Fay Burbach	I've spent the last 21 years playing the part of "Mrs. B." I've never acted in my life--but this was on my "to do" list. Please don't think that I was typecast in this role. Please.
PIERRE MARCEAU A French Art Dealer	Delon Kathol	Moved back to Hartington two years ago in January after too many years of education. Now I roll grass full time, so I am a sod farmer. I graduated from Cedar Catholic in 1995, where I participated in my last production as King Claudius in "Something's Rotten in the State of Denmark," I also was a participant in competitive speech for two years, culminating in a State Championship gold my senior year in oral interpretation of drama. Since then, my only acting experiences involve quoting movie lines and the Simpson's....and lying to my mother (last experience provided by Lynn Kathol, mom).
ELIZABETH HARTLEY-TRUMPINGTON High society friend of Mildred	Sheila Olsen	Sheila’s first taste of the stage was in 2^nd grade when she played a mouse in the all-school play of Cinderella. She had the lead her Senior year as Penelope in Great Caesar’s Ghost, and was in Annie Get Your Gun at the Lewis & Clark Riverside Theater a few years later. She has been married to Jeff Olsen since 1992 and has five children: Sofi, Aspen, Parker, Greer and Sadi. She also has one dog named Vinegar. Sheila currently serves on the CCT's Board of Directors and has been managing contact for the Missoula Children's Theatre. She has appeared in such past CCT productions as Evening of Culture, Christmas Duet, and How the West Was Fun.
JOAN MAPLE Nosey "Murder She Wrote" neighbor to Mildred	Maggie Fleming	I inherited my interest in the theatre from my Dad. In high school, I was involved in theatre and speech and also in the LeMars Community Theatre. I was really excited when I heard that Cedar County was creating a community theatre. I have been in several productions now with the Cedar County Theatre and currently serve on its Board of Directors. My favorite role in the CCT so far has been as Gold Crust Gertie in "How the West Was Fun" -- type-casting at its best - HA! It is a blast to be involved with this group and I encourage anyone who has though about it, to make it a reality when we have auditions for our next production! I live in a charming country house with my husband Charlie and our 3 sons - Beau, Charlie and Weston.
INSPECTOR PRATT Bumbling superior to Thompkins	Bill Heimes	Bill, is a life-time Cedar County resident. He farms by day (and by night) but has made time out of his busy schedule to entertain us all in this production. Bill was married to Darla back in August 2002. Bill has an extensive background in theater, being involved in Hartington Public School’s one-act plays and all-school plays: Great Caesar’s Ghost, Li’l Abner, In This Hotel, Laughing Room Only, Incident at San Bajo, and Opal’s Husband. He also went on to perform in Norfolk Community Theater’s production of Our Town. He's acted in such past Cedar County Theatre productions as Evening of Culture, All I Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten, and How the West Was Fun.
CONSTABLE THOMPKINS Intelligent subordinate to Pratt	Dave Zimmer	Hi, I'm Dave Zimmer (aka Thompkins and regrettably ZsaZsa). After spending 12 years in education as a teacher, coach and high school principal, I'm now embarking on a new career as a motivational speaker. Check out my website: http://www.davezimmerspeaks.com I'm not very good at this theater stuff, but I really enjoy laughing at Bill Heimes. I live in Hartington with my wife, Renae, son, Nolan, daughter, Camryn, and dog, Blue.

Director - Sally Opfer

Stage Manager - Shelley Lammers

Set Design and Construction - Shelley Lammers
with assistance from cast & crew

Light and Sound - Glen Lammers & Beau Fleming

Sound Effects/Prompts - Audrey Bryan

Props and furniture - Lee Carl, Lynn Kathol, Crystal Lenzen, Sally, Shelley

A big THANK YOU to . . .

The City Council and City of Hartington for allowing us to call the Auditorium "home"

The Women's Volleyball League for moving league to the Holy Trinity Gymnasium on October 28th and November 4th so that we may make final preparations for this production

Cedar Catholic High School and Holy Trinity Elementary School for allowing the Women's Volleyball League to use their gym for league games on October 28th and November 4th

Dave Konz at the Globe Clothiers in Hartington for "Bunting's" tuxedo

Sheryl Connolly for loaning us "Thompkins'" bobbie hat

Our season sponsors, please take a moment to click on this link to find out which area businesses and organizations have supported the Cedar County Theatre during its 2004 Season

CCT Benefactors for the 2004-2005 season: Steve & Connie Hillis, Dan & Brenda Steiner, and Sacred Heart Monastery. To become a Benefactor of the Cedar County Theatre, please contact Shelley Lammers or Maggie Fleming

CCT Members for their assistance to program preparation, ticket taking, etc.: Marilyn Hansen, Cindy Howey, Sr. Debra Kolecka, Renae Zimmer, A.J. Johnson, Jeff Olsen and Darla Heimes

Such area business, organizations and persons, either directly named or unnamed who made donations directly or who participated in our "Stage Fundraising" fundraisers

PRESS RELEASE FOR IMMEDIATE PUBLICATION

Murder, mayhem, confusion, chaos and comedy – you’ll find all of this and more at the Cedar County Theatre’s latest production. "Murdered To Death" by Peter Gordon is a hilarious parody in the best of Agatha Christie traditions. Guaranteed to delight, the assembled cast of characters includes Bunting the butler, an English Colonel with the prerequisite stiff upperlip, a shady French art dealer and his moll, bumbling local inspectors, and a well-meaning local sleuth who seems to attract murder. Audience members will enjoy the side-splitting antics which follow the mysterious death of the owner of a country manor house. It soon becomes clear that the murderer isn’t finished yet, but will the murderer be unmasked before everyone else has met their doom, or will the audience die laughing first?

Cast members consist of seasoned veterans as well as some new faces to the CCT stage, including Lynn Kathol as Mildred Bagshot, Crystal Lenzen as Dorothy Foxton, Lee Carl as Bunting the Butler, Bob Bryan as Colonel Charles Craddock, Fay Burbach as Margaret Craddock, Sheila Olsen as Elizabeth Hartley-Trumpington, Delon Kathol as Pierre Marceau, Maggie Fleming as Joan Maple, Dave Zimmer as Constable Thompkins, and Bill Heimes as Inspector Pratt. Sally Opfer directs this production with assistance from Stage Manager, Shelley Lammers.

Our new faces include Lee Carl, Bob Bryan, Delon Kathol, Fay Burbach and Dave Zimmer. Dave may not seem so new since he briefly appeared in the Theatre’s last production as a dance hall girl as part of a fundraising gimic. When asked if he would consider being in this production, he fired back the question, "do I have to wear a dress?" Even though he wouldn’t be dressing up as a woman, he decided to give it a try anyway. Bob Bryan may be a stranger to our stage, but he’s no stranger to the stage. Bob has appeared in the past in such productions as "Hello, Dolly" and "Bye, Bye, Birdie." Sally Opfer speaks highly of Lee Carl and Fay Burbach stating, "How wonderful it is to have all this talent right here in Hartington. Delon's portrayal of a smarmy frenchman is hilarious, Lee will crack you up as Bunting the Butler and Fay is quite convincing as Margaret Craddock.

"Murdered to Death" has had over 400 amateur productions in the UK, South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. With hundreds of successful productions, this comedy has proven to be a hit with audiences worldwide. In a correspondence from the author, Peter Gordon writes, "I am delighted that you are staging the very first Community Theatre performances of the play in the USA. I send my very best wishes to you and your audiences for what I hope will be an enjoyable and successful production." To find out more about the author, please go to http://www.petergordonplays.com.

"Murdered to Death" will be performed on October 29, October 30, November 4 and November 5 at the Hartington City Auditorium. Advance tickets may be purchased at D & J Variety in Hartington. No reserved seating available. Tickets are $7.00 for adults, and $3.00 for Children under 12.

Want to become a Benefactor of the Cedar County Theatre? Contribution levels are as follows: $50 - Understudy (includes 1 complimentary season pass); $100 - Chorus Line (includes 2 complimentary season passes); $250 - Featured Player (includes 2 complimentary season passes); $500 – Costar (includes 2 complimentary season passes); $1000 – Star (includes 4 complimentary season passes); and $5000 – Legend (includes 4 complimentary season passes). The current season runs from July 1, 2004 through June 30, 2005. For more information contact Shelley Lammers 254-6994 after 6:00 p.m.; Maggie Fleming 254-6772 after 6:00 p.m.; or stop in at D & J Variety and talk to Lee. Visit our website at http://cedarcountytheatre.tripod.com or email us at cedarcountytheatre@hotmail.com.

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Cedar County Theatre * P.O. Box 752 * Hartington, NE 68739

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Page Last Updated: 11/15/2005 04:36 PM