Lane Community College is hoping to make a killing with its fall play, “The Mousetrap.” The play, by famous mystery writer Dame Agatha Christie, will have audiences asking “whodunit” starting Friday.
The director, LCC theater arts professor Eileen Kearney, decided to produce this show at LCC after remembering her first time seeing the show in London, where it is still running. One of the longest-running plays ever, “The Mousetrap” has been performed in London for the last 48 years.
“It took off and never stopped,” Kearney said. “Then it became kind of a cult thing.”
The play is a textbook murder mystery. The nine characters all enter the stage fitting the physical description of a murderer who the audience has heard about from a radio broadcast. From the beginning, everyone is a suspect, and that is exactly what Kearney wants.
As a form of audience participation, there will be a vote box at intermission where audience members can guess who they think the murderer is. The prize for a right answer is a two-for-one coupon to LCC’s spring play, “You Can’t Take it With You.”
Adding to the mystery of the characters is the fact that the majority of their real-life counterparts are new to the LCC stage. Kearney put off casting until the start of the new school year purposely to see what new people had to offer.
“Some directors like to cast a fall show over the summer,” Kearney said. “But I didn’t want to, because at LCC we get a fresh, new batch of talent every year.”
This delay meant that rehearsal time was cut short. The play’s first rehearsal was in the beginning of October, giving the cast just a month to pull things together.
Luckily, there was some seasoned talent to ease the process. Patrick Torelle, LCC theater professor for 14 years, joins the cast as the mysterious Mr. Paravicini. Although faculty performances are not unheard of, it is a rare treat for both the faculty and the students.
“The idea is that when you get out there with the students and demonstrate what you’ve been talking about in class, it reinforces the knowledge,” Torelle said.
Torelle’s talent is even more tuned to this particular play, considering he played the same role 30 years ago at another community college.
“I think I’m much better now,” Torelle said. “And I’m closer to the right age for the part.”
One might think that acting with a teacher could be intimidating, but Torelle does his best to blend in.
“My approach always remains the same as an actor,” Torelle said. “I’m out there as a servant of the play. My fellow actors are my colleagues, and I treat them with respect.”
Another man who deserves credit for this production won’t be on the stage; he made it. Scene designer and technical director Skip Hubbard recreated the original London set of the play for the LCC stage. Aside from minor necessary modifications because of the stage size and house shape, it is a perfect reproduction.
Because of such physical disparities among theaters, a set reproduction is rarely undertaken by designers. But Hubbard thought that he could make an exception.
“In this case, we thought it would be an honor to that designer and the play to just copy the set that was so synonymous with the show,” Hubbard said.
Another reproduction in the show is not seen but heard. Kearney decided to have the actors use authentic English dialect and accents in their roles. While learning an accent is a difficult job for the cast, it was necessary to create the 1948 period that Kearney wanted. She also noted that it makes it much easier to pull off the dry British humor in the script.
The humor is very subtle, and American audiences must expect it, or else they might miss it.
“Like all murder mysteries, it has to use tongue and cheek,” Kearney said. “It doesn’t take itself very seriously.”
People who are ready to dig for clues can see the play Fridays and Saturdays, Nov. 3-18 at 8 p.m. There will also be a Sunday matinee Nov. 12 at 2 p.m. Tickets are $10 for adults and $8 for students and seniors. They can be purchased at the Lane Ticket Office (726-2202) or at the EMU ticket office.