There’s no denying it: people love a good murder. How else could one explain the myriad forms of entertainment based on the despicable act? Why else would we have an entire genre of literature (and so many subgenres upon subgenres) devoted to solving how A killed B? Or the fourteen spin-offs of CSI? Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot, Thomas Sullivan Magnum…so many famous characters over the years have entered our lives, charged with the task of ferreting out the truth and exposing the identity of the “Who” that “dunnit.”
Now, thanks to the efforts of the talented folks of Champaign-Urbana Theatre Company, you can get in on the action. This coming Saturday, October 18th, CUTC will present Out to Sea, an interactive dinner-theatre/role-play event involving volunteer actors and people just like you.
The storyline provided by CUTC for this event goes like this:
You left Southampton on Wednesday for a weeklong journey to New York. Nearly halfway there, and you’ve never been at a loss for something to do – not only reading and card parties, but everything from squash to bicycling, swimming to developing your own photographs.
You are surrounded by the cream of European and American society. The ship is so vast and so stable you can scarcely tell you are moving. The décor and service are comparable to the finest of hotels. And, of course, the food is divine. The date is Sunday, April 14, 1912. Welcome to the First-Class Dining Saloon of the RMS Titanic.
Captain Edward J. Smith, well-loved by the ocean-traveling set, is personally presiding over dinner this evening, ably assisted by one of the stewards, Nicholas Coleman. The best-known guests here tonight are real estate tycoon James Jefferson Pastorius and his scandalously young wife Leonora, Pastorius’ business partner S. Talbot Ives, and Mrs. Silas Black (who seems to travel without her mining-magnate husband a great deal.) The other guests are unknown to most, but if they’re here they surely must be all right.
Of course, it’s not all right. Adultery, theft, financial misdeeds, and general mayhem are on the menu. And of course, someone is going to end up dead. Well, probably more than one before morning, but don’t worry. The iceberg won’t even be sighted until long after dinner is over. There’s no need to worry about that. Not when there’s so much else to worry about…
A little murder, some fancypants accoutrements, and dinner, too. Sounds like a promising night out.
Doing a little “detective work” of my own (but not really), I spoke with Stefanie Senior, Sara Dare, and Ella van Wyk, all of whom are involved in this production. Here’s what they had to say about CUTC’s history with murder-mysteries, how they got involved, and what to expect…other than the unexpected.
———
Smile Politely: It would appear from CUTC’s website that the organization has performed these murder-mysteries before. How long has this tradition been going on?
Ella van Wyk: CUTC has been performing Murder Mysteries for many years. I am relatively new to the company, but I would say about 10 years. What makes this one coming up unique is that they are usually contracted out to a private party, like an employer who wants to throw one for their employees, etc. This one is open to the public, which CUTC used to do, but hasn’t for several years. It is an effort for us to get some exposure here in town as most of the ones we perform are actually outside of Champaign and Urbana.
SP: How many CUTC company members will be participating in Out to Sea?
van Wyk: This particular plot has a cast of 11 characters and they are all volunteers who do this out of a love of the performance and a free meal! All our actors for all our shows are volunteers.
SP: Stefanie, I know a lot of people will know you from your work at the Station Theatre and at Parkland, so I’ll start off by asking how long you’ve been involved in CUTC. How many shows have you done with them?
Stefanie Senior: I’ve worked with CUTC in some capacity since I moved to Champaign in 2006. I’ve been in two shows (Les Mis in 2006 and Bye Bye Birdie in 2008), worked run crew for one (Music Man in 2011), directed one (You’re A Good Man Charlie Brown in March of 2014), and worked box office for one (Seven Brides in June of 2014). So I suppose that’s four shows. I also work in the CUTC offices as a management intern.
SP: And what is your involvement with this production?
Senior: I’m on the planning committee for this production, and am also serving as a producer for the event, so I’ve been doing things like helping book promos and advertising things
SP: Without spoiling anything, what can you tell us about the plot and characters of Out to Sea?
Senior: I can tell you that it’s on the Titanic, at the Captain’s Dinner. There is a cast of characters — and I do mean characters — any and all of whom may have something to hide. Unlike a traditional play, a grand majority of this is improvised, and anything the characters say or do could be fair game in terms of helping to catch the killer.
SP: Is there anything that audience members should know before attending? Anything they should do to prepare?
Senior: We really want everyone to have fun! We are encouraging our guests to come in their finest evening attire — something appropriate to the Captain’s Dinner. It’s been a while since our murder mysteries have been open to the public, and we really want to get ourselves and this program back out into the community.
SP: Sara, I should ask what it is that you like about this type of interactive theatre.
Sara Dare: The great part about our mysteries is that you never know what will happen! Even if you see the same plot multiple times, it will never be identical. Our actors improv, so you won’t see the same reactions. They all play the roles differently, as much is left to the actors’ interpretation.
SP: What about this particular “plot” (the sea voyage) made you decide it was the right show to try next?
Dare: We chose Out to Sea for two reasons. One, it is a lot of fun. Two, it is set on the Titanic‘s maiden and only voyage. And some of the characters are based off of real passengers! We even have our own Unsinkable Molly Brown in the character of Milly Black!
SP: What would you like the C-U community to know about this event that might entice them to come take part?
Dare: You will have an incredibly enjoyable evening and a wonderful meal. You can come as yourself, or create your own character for the night. You can also get as involved as you want. Feel free to be a fly on the wall or chase our characters around hunting down evidence! Or even somewhere in between.
SP: What else is coming up this season for CUTC?
van Wyk: Coming up for CUTC we have our Dickensian Carolers for the holiday season — they can be hired to sing in full period costume for anyone’s business or home. Our Broadway Beginners Workshop starts in January for kids between 6th and 8th grade. They are performing How to Eat Like Child this year with a final performance at the Orpheum and then our Main Season shows next summer are Pirates of Penzance and Guys & Dolls. All the details for these are on the website.
———
Ticket sales for this event have already closed (our bad for not posting this beforehand), but hopefully there will be even more of these events in CUTC’s — and our — future.