There’s a killer on board and a few surprises offstage

By Melissa Crispin-Piche Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A scream from offstage had an entire audience jumping. For director Robert Cole that was a good sign the Strathmore Theatre Players Guild’s Murder on the Orient Express was right on track.

The opening performances have brought laughter, suspense and the satisfaction of watching an audience get thoroughly caught up in a mystery. 

On opening Friday, Cole said, one particularly well-timed interruption made it clear the production had its passengers aboard. 

“And then there’s this scream from offstage, and I don’t think there was a single person in the audience who didn’t jump,” he said.

Apparently, nobody needed a second invitation to remain in their seats.

The guild’s production brings Agatha Christie’s murder mystery to the stage through an adaptation by playwright Ken Ludwig, whose work made choosing the show an easy decision for Cole. 

“I just love his writing, it’s so much fun,” said Cole.

Getting the production ready, however, came with a plot twist nobody ordered. A cast member’s injury meant another guild member had to step into the role of Ratchett, complete with a glued-on moustache.

The replacement also changed the way the cast interacted with the character, requiring adjustments as the company worked to keep the show moving. Cole credited the performers with bringing plenty of willingness and personality to the task. “They’re a great group.”

That enthusiasm extends to the production’s assortment of accents, including Belgian, Hungarian, French and Swedish. The cast embraced the challenge, giving Cole an abundance of choices as he shaped the performances.

“This cast has been over the top, since the beginning,” he said.

For a director, having that much energy to work with is a welcome problem. For an audience trying to determine who deserves suspicion, it makes for quite the carriage of characters.

Of course, a murder mystery needs more than convincing accents and questionable passengers. It needs clues.

Cole said the production puts them in plain sight, although first-time viewers may not recognize their significance. A small detail can pass almost unnoticed until the story reveals why it matters.

“I’m absolutely blatantly obvious on the clues,” he added.

The guild gives audiences a chance to test that claim. Cole said patrons who have paid to see the production can return to watch it again, an approach the group introduced several years ago. With the mystery solved, a second visit becomes an opportunity to spot what slipped past the first time. Consider it another crack at the case and also an opportunity to spread the word of live theatre throughout the community. 

Behind the scenes, Cole singled out Tashina Mackenzie for helping bring the production together. The guild co-chair and stage manager has taken on prompting, dressing and props, as well as calling the show.

With three productions being prepared in Strathmore, backstage help has been stretched. Mackenzie’s contribution has been especially valuable. 

“So, she has really come through,” Cole said.

For anyone who has never attended a guild production, Cole’s invitation is straightforward: come comfortably, settle in and enjoy the story. There is no dress code demanding passengers arrive as though they have booked first class.

“You don’t have to sit there and wear a suit to the show, and it’s not pretentious; it is very relaxed,” he said.

There is also the pleasure of discovering a familiar face has an unexpected talent perhaps someone usually encountered at work, around town or across a counter. 

“You will suddenly discover that your local granite cutter is a fairly good actor,” he laughed. 

And because it is live theatre, even a carefully plotted mystery leaves room for a surprise. “And sometimes … it’s live, so you get to see extra stuff,” he added. 

Tickets can be purchased online through their website (strathmoreplayers.ca), at The Vault or at the door. The show runs Nov 6-21 at the Hope Covenant Community Church; evening shows begins at 7:30 p.m., matiness at 2 p.m. Nov. 14 and 15. General admission is $22 while youth and seniors are $17.