Music, murder and mystery: SHS presents 'Curtains'

Apr. 25—Music, murder and mystery — these themes encapsulate this weekend's Stillwater High School spring musical production.

"Curtains" will show Thursday through Saturday at 7:30 p.m. at the SHS Performing Arts Center with a 2:30 p.m. matinee on Sunday.

Set in 1959 at the fictional Bostonia Playhouse in Boston, Massachusetts, the comedy goes behind the scenes of a fictional musical called "Robbin' Hood", where wit and mayhem lurk just on the other side of the curtain.

The musical's leading lady, Jessica Cranshaw, is murdered onstage during her curtain call. Stage Manager Oscar Shapiro and the new leading lady, Niki Harris, have to solve the crime.

The musical features a score by John Kander and Fred Ebb and a book by Rupert Holmes.

SHS Theatre Teacher Elizabeth Ziegler first saw the show in New York during previews. As a childhood fan of detective stories, the play resonated with her.

"The script is packed with fantastic jokes, a classic American musical theatre score and characters you can't help but root for," Ziegler said. "And just when you think you know who did it, the true whodunit will keep you guessing until the end."

Jacob Ebersole stars as musical theatre aficionado Lieutenant Frank Cioffi and Andi Reuter as show-within-a-show "Robbin' Hood" producer Carmen Bernstein.

Katy Croft and Conner Sigrist star as former married lyricist and composer couple Georgia Hendricks and Aaron Fox, Mabrie Baldwin as understudy Niki Harris, and Ben Brown as director Christopher Belling.

Additional cast members include Owen Duhart as theatre critic Daryl Grady, Molly Kelly as stage manager Johnnie Harmon, Ethan Hammer as "Robbin' Hood" investor Oscar Shapiro, Logan Propst as lead dancer and choreographer Bobby Pepper and Natalie VanDeventer as aspiring dancer Bambi Bernet.

Between the cast, crew and pit orchestra, 100 students are involved in the production. The cast itself involves 38 students and there's a directorial team of four.

The cast dedicated more than 100 rehearsal hours to the production, Ziegler said.

"This is an incredible cast and it's been a true joy to watch every one of them grow as performers over the last few months," Ziegler said. "They have all poured themselves into this show and they really have something wonderful to share with the community."

In 2007, "Curtains" premiered on Broadway starring David Hyde Pierce of Frasier fame. It won eight nominations for Tony awards, including Best Original Score and Best Musical.

"This show is not as well known as titles we've done the last several years, but it's such a fun show," Ziegler says. "The combination of a murder mystery with backstage tomfoolery is one that all audiences can enjoy."

Tickets are available for $8 at stillwaterschools.com/curtains.