The Mystery of Edwin Drood

A Musical by Rupert Holmes

Show Dates: June 24-26; July 1-3; July 8-10
Curtain: 8 pm; except for Sunday July 10 2 pm matinee only

Tickets: $16 in Advance; $18 at the door
To purchase tickets.. 

Due to adult humor, this show is rate PG-13!

At the Valley Players Theater, Rte 100 Waitsfield (directions)

Congratulations to the The Cast and Thank You to all those who auditioned!

Directed by Ruth Ann Pattee

Music Director:  Tim Guiles

Volunteers are Welcome! (Special need for portrait artist)

a Tams-Witmark Musical

Act One....
opens as the members of the Music Hall Royale circulate among the audience, introducing themselves to the patrons, the Chairman of the proceedings bursts forth with the show's opening number There You Are. They then introduce John Jasper, the "Jekyll and Hyde" choirmaster who greets his young nephew Edwin Drood. Drood is engaged to the fair Miss Rosa Bud, who is Jasper's music pupil and the object of his mad obsession-Moonfall. The kindly Reverend Crisparkle and two exotic emigrants from Ceylon, Helena and Neville Landless, arrive. Neville is immediately attracted to Rosa, which makes him a rival to both Edwin and the secretive Jasper.

     Next we travel to London and the sinister opium den of the Princess Puffer who clowns with the audience, and explains her life in the hilarious and entertaining Wages of Sin. A sinewy ballet dance follows. We discover that one of Puffer's regular clients is none other than Jasper himself, who cries out the name "Rosa Bud" during a hallucination. Puffer shows great interest in this fact, and stores it away in her memory.

     Back in Cloisterham, Neville and Drood meet and come to odds with each other almost immediately. Mayor Sapsea sings of this in the patter song Both Sides of the Coin. We are then introduced to the drunken stone mason Durdles, and his assistant Deputy. In the graveyard, they tell us that Edwin and Rosa have called off their engagement-Perfect Strangers.

     It is Christmas Eve and Jasper has arranged a 'reconciliating' dinner for the Landless twins, Crisparkle, Rosa and Drood-No Good Can Come from Bad. Jasper serves a particularly potent wine to his guests. Soon, the party disbands and the guests depart into a violent storm.

     The next day Drood has vanished. Crisparkle's assistant discovers Edwin's torn coat by the river. Drood was last seen walking there with Neville the night before. The cast summarizes the situation and launches into the rousing Off to the Races.

Act Two....
begins six months later, and still there is no sign of Drood. There is much speculation as to his fate. Two sleuths arrive from out of town. One is Princess Puffer, and the other is a detective-in-disguise named Dick Datchery-A Private Investigation. One by one the characters reenter and build to the rousing kick-line number Don't Quit While You're Ahead. The company seems about to reveal the solution to the mystery when...the number and the play stop abruptly. The Chairman reveals that here is where Charles Dickens laid down his pen forever!

     The play is now thrown open to the audience while the Chairman and Company review the various suspects' motives and plot possibilities. In a series of unique voting events, amid much cheering (and booing and hissing of the villains), the audience determines the conclusion of the show.

Production Team

Ruth Ann Pattee, Director/Producer
Ruth Ann studied Theater Arts at East Stroudsburg University in PA. She has produced and directed several plays and musicals for the Valley Players. 

In addition she has directed KidsACT! camps for seven years, written and directed several children's plays for the Valley Players, two of which have been published, most recently "A Modern Christmas Carol". 

Ruth Ann also works with Harwood Union High School & Middle School and the Washington County Youth Service Bureau to bring theater to area students during the school year. When not directing, she enjoys performing, and has been seen most recently in the Barre Players' production of "The Music Man" as Marian, and in the Unadilla Theater production of "Yeomen of the Guard" as Phoebe and in "Working" at the Middlebury Town Hall Theater.

Tim Guiles, Music Director
Tim is the accompanist for the Mad River Chorale, Barre Choraleers, and Randolph Singers, and has worked as a music director with the Barre Players, Unadilla Theater, Spaulding High School, Harwood Union, and GMVS. He also has his own chorale group in Barre.

QUICK REVIEW:

This wildly warm-hearted theatrical experience kicks off when the Music Hall Royale (a hilariously loony Victorian musical troupe) "puts on" its flamboyant rendition of an unfinished Dickens mystery. The story itself deals with John Jasper, a Jekyll-and-Hyde choirmaster who is quite madly in love with his music student, the fair Miss Rosa Bud. Now, Miss Bud is, in turn, engaged to Jasper's nephew, young Edwin Drood. Our title character disappears mysteriously one stormy Christmas Eve-but has Edwin Drood been murdered? And if so, then whodunnit? Musical numbers include The Wage of Sin, Perfect Strangers, Both Sides of the Coin, Don't Quit While You're Ahead and Moonfall. The giddy playfullness of this play-within-a-play draws the audience toward one of DROOD'S most talked-about features, which allows the audience to vote on the solution as prelude to the most unusual and hilarious finale!

AWARDS (1985-86):

5 Tony Awards for Musical, Book, Score, Director and Actor
8 Drama Desk Awards for Musical, Music, Book,
   Orchestration, Director, Costume Design, Actor and
   Featured Actress
5 Outer Critics Circle Awards for Broadway Musical,
   Choreography, Costume Design, Set Design and
   Lighting Design

BRIEF HISTORY:

This wildly warm-hearted free-for-all originated in the round, then transferred to Broadway's Imperial Theatre for 608 performances. It also played on London's West End.

The Chairman - Jack Bradt

Edwin Drood - Colleen Mays

John Jasper - Michael LeMay

Princess Puffer - Pam White

Rosa Bud - Andrea Bonamico

Neville Landless - Andrew Hudson-Sabens

Helena Landless - Laura Zingle

Reverend Crisparkle - Jake Barickman

Bazzard - Bryan Wockley

Durdles - Adam Tyksinski

Deputy - TBA

Wendy - Megan Turner

Beatrice - Susan Evans

Flo - Nina Brennan

Horace - Tom Badowski

Ensemble:

Holli Nickleson, Megan Turner, Susan Evans,

Kathryn O’Neill, Shannon Pitonyak Nina Brennan,

Tom Badowski, Bryan Wockley, Adam Tyksinski

Volunteer!

Putting on a show depends on volunteers. Experience is valued but not necessary! Poster artist, publicity, back stage, lights, hair, costumes, make-up, props, ushers, ticket sellers, intermission refreshments and.......

We need a portrait artist to paint a portrait of whoever is cast as Rosa!

You can give a little or a lot of time. If you don't know what you want to do, we'll find something for you!

Contact Ruth Ann if you are interested!

Tickets

Tickets are $16 in advance and $18 at the door.

To purchase tickets in advance you can:

-go to the Sugarbush Chamber of Commerce on Rte 100 starting June 1

-mail a check with a note giving us your name, phone number, show date and number of tickets you want

-call 583-1674

-email..  Do not give your credit card number. Give your phone number and you will be called for your information.