The Cumberland Theatre will continue it’s 33rd Main Stage Season with the comedy CLUE on Stage, opening this Thursday, October 7th and playing for three weekends. Based on the popular Hasbro board game and the 1985 film starring Tim Curry and an all-star cast, the show is a hilarious farce-meet-murder mystery.
The tale begins at a remote mansion, where six mysterious guests assemble for an unusual dinner party where murder and blackmail are on the menu. When their host turns up dead, they all become suspects. Led by the Wadsworth - the butler, Miss Scarlett, Professor Plum, Mrs. White, Mr. Green, Mrs. Peacock and Colonel Mustard race to find the killer as the body count stacks up.
The show is being directed by Darrell Rushton, whose CT directing credits include Fool for Love (2018) and A Streetcar Named Desire (2019). The cast features familiar faces as well as a few debut performances.
Leading the cast as Wadsworth the butler (a role made iconic by Tim Curry in the film) will be New York based actor Matt Kurzyneic who has been seen on the CT stage as Norm in the comedy Meteor Shower and Guiseppe Zangara in the musical Assassins. Playing Yvette the Maid and making her CT debut will be Rachel Lawhead. Originally from Vienna, VA and now residing in Brooklyn, NY, Lawhead’s on stage credits include Louise (Always Patsy Cline), Lavinia (Titus Andronicus), and Mrs. Lovett (Sweeney Todd).
Playing the six iconic board game characters will be Shawn Cox (Colonel Mustard), Bill Dennison (Mr. Green), Nicole Halmos (Mrs. Peacock), Kimberli Rowley (Mrs. White), Ashley Snow (Miss Scarlet) and Gregory Stuart (Professor Plum).
Cox was last seen on the CT stage as Mr. Macy in A Miracle on 34th Street. He has also appeared as Callahan in Legally Blonde the Musical and the sheriff in Night of the Living Dead Live. Dennison recently appeared in this season’s Moonlight and Magnolias as screenwriter Ben Hecht. Halmos has appeared in many roles at CT since returning to the area. Recent appearances include Sara Jane Moore in Assassins, Nat in Rabbit Hole and Mama Rose in Gypsy.
Rowley serves as the Co-Artistic Director of the theatre and recently appeared in The House of Yes (Jackie-O) and Moonlight and Magnolias, which she also directed. Snow returns to CT after appearing in this season’s The Great Gatsby as Jordan. Stuart, a professor at Frostburg State University, is making is CT debut.
Also appearing in CLUE in a wide variety of diverse supporting roles are Morganne Chu, Marty Jellison and Seth Thompson.
The creative team includes Rhett Wolford (set design), Jennifer Clark (costume design), Joshua Taylor (lighting design), Chris McCabe (music director/accompanist), Trevor McCabe (props master), Hayden Kline (stage manager), Jellison (assistant stage manager) and Ebony Gennes (assistant stage manager).
CLUE on Stage is being performed October 7th – 24th with Thursday – Saturday shows at 8:00 pm and Sundays at 2:00 pm. Masks are required to be worn by audience members at all times while in the building. The show contains mild language and light inuendo. Parental discretion is encouraged.
CLUE is being sponsored by Mary Splain Shrout with additional financial assistance provided by Rocky Gap Resort and Sam and Pam Griffith. For tickets, please visit www.cumberlandtheatre.com or call the box office at 301.759.4990.