A 'Family Murder' in Vienna

Starring in Vienna Theatre Company's An Old Fashioned Family Murder are, from left, Ansley Sherwin as Clarice, Taveion Mickens as Jasper, Michelle Kritzler as Mrs. Peck, and Eddie Perez as THE Junior Detective /Photo by Kevin Lukacs  

Vienna Theatre Company's An Old Fashioned Family Murder will leave you smiling and happy, just like a mysterious comedy should, even if it involves a family murder.

Yeeks!

Director Katie Boone has fleshed out superb acting by all  six players, but no one can do it better than the arrogant and conceited Mr. Arthur Whittington (Charles Boone) spewing condescending remarks whenever he can find  opportunities to build his bullying personality.

And find opportunities a'plenty, he does.

Who cares if he's a famous author? 

Is there a body under there?  Junior Detective Peck (Eddie Perez) wants to know in Vienna Theatre Company's An Old Fashioned Family Murder/Photo by  Kevin Lukacs 

Mr. Whittington arrives at the family mansion of Colonel Claythorne on a "dark and stormy night" as thunder crashes and lightening flashes outside the windows of the fancy parlor. (Realistic crashes and lighting by Myer Kim, Ari McSherry, and Julia O'Beirne.)  

The colonel, age 93, is never seen in person but he dominates the conversation and the stage from his large portrait perched above the fireplace.

The menacing Whittington brings upsetting news for the colonel's two daughters: One of them has been cut out of their father's will!

The will!  

Oh, my! 

Which daughter?

Are you kidding?  

Whatever shall happen to me, me, me?

Glory be!  Charles Boone as Arthur Whittington in Vienna Theatre Company's An Old Fashioned Family Murder celebrates the passage of writer's block/Photo by Kevin Lukacs 

That "me, me, me" is the hilarious and wildly animated "pool boy," Jasper (Taveion Mickens) badly in need of a dictionary and he's also the fiancé of Clarice (Ansley Sherwin), the prissy and aloof daughter dressed in glamourous evening wear, accompanied always by a dangling cigarette.  (Costuming by Juliana Confrancesco and Farrell Hartigan.)

Priggish sister Dottie (Samantha Mitchell) is a bookworm who wears all black neck to knees and who kissed Mr. Whittington on his cheek (?) and what did that mean?  (Mitchell's hesitancy and speech pauses endear her to the audience.) 

Enter the kindly, maybe doddering Mrs. Peck (Michelle Kritzler) who knows a thing or two about murders (her dead husband was a chief detective) and she's got some learnin' to do for this crowd, including that for her son, junior detective Peck (Eddie Perez) whom she summons to help solve the murder of ...?

The mother and son duo make quite the chitchat, but wait...Mrs. Peck is stuffing a piece of paper inside her dress?  Huh?

And, what's this? Sigmund Freud? Mrs. Peck aims to take him down a peg or two.

It’s always fun to pick out whodunnit and this one is not easy.  You should try it and see.  I never get them right.

Unseen cast members are Kim Paul, the radio announcer, and Shelby Kaplan who sings.

Charles Boone not only acts but he designed the set, an elegant, red-velveted walled parlor, just as you'd expect for Joe DiPietro's 1940s show, DiPietro, a two-time Tony Award winner.  

Helping stage the Murder are Kevin Lukacs, producer; Anna Mae Murphy and Suellen Evans, stage managers; Michelle Lukacs, lead set painter, and more of Katie Boone as properties designer and helper for her husband with set dressing.

What: An Old Fashioned Family Murder

When: 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, and 2 p.m., Sunday through Nov. 1.

Where: Vienna Theatre Company at the Vienna Community Center, 120 Cherry St. SE, Vienna, VA 22180

How much: Tickets are $16. Order online at Vienna, VA – WebTrac Ticket Search (myvscloud.com), or buy, if available, at the community center box office.

Duration: About 90 minutes plus an intermission.

Audience:  Recommended for ages 10 and up.

For more information: vtcshows@yahoo.com.

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