A dead body at Town Hall? Must be 'Unexpected Guest'

CORNWALL — “The Unexpected Guestâ€� arrives, to find a body in the study.  Eight people are suspects. Who will turn out to be the murderer?

Find out when the Town Hall Players present the Agatha Christie murder mystery onstage May 23 and 24.

For those not familiar with what critics call Christie’s greatest work, Producer Bobbie Tyson offers only this clue: “It wasn’t the butler!�

Those familiar with the plot will still enjoy a brilliant ensemble performance.

That confident prediction is based on numerous past productions, as well as a smash outdoor summer performance of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,� featuring a large portion of the local population, and varied stage productions that have never failed to thrill audiences.

Many of the same actors will hit the boards of the Town Hall Stage to perform “The Unexpected Guest� as a radio show. The action will be sparse, but the drama high with the focus narrowed to a play within a play, with actors gathered around a microphone, projecting plot and characters mostly through voice.

It’s a challenge, but a recent rehearsal shows this cast is up for it. Directors Jandi Hanna and Joe Harnett are putting the majority of their direction into voice inflection. Playing mostly to the microphone, rather than to each other, presents its own challenges for the actors.

A newcomer to the Town Hall stage is John Hare. The Cornwall Consolidated School eighth grader is not new to performing. He was last seen as Injun Joe in the school’s production of “Tom Sawyer.� Tyson was impressed by his performance and asked him to audition for “The Unexpected Guest.�

“This is definitely the biggest part I’ve ever had,� he said during a recent rehearsal break, adding with a grin, “I play the emotionally delayed half brother of the dead guy.�

Certainly a lot of baggage to deal with there. During rehearsal, he throws himself into figuring out how to “be� this troubled kid. It’s as exhausting as the soccer and baseball he’s playing this spring. He arrived at rehearsal straight from a practice and munched a big sandwich while waiting to go on stage.

“I thought it would be a small part, if I got it at all. But it’s working out. I’m only rehearsing about one night a week, so I’m keeping up with my homework and stuff.�

John’s favorite part is that his character is the subject of one of the play’s shocking plot twists. He let it slip, then swore this reporter to secrecy, not wanting to spoil it for the audiences.

The production also features Dave Cadwell, Matt Collins, Leslie Gyorsok, Molly Hinchman, Nick Jacobs, John Perry, Ann Schillinger, Larry Stevens and John Miller. Tricia Collins is the sound effects technician.

Performances are Friday, May 23,  and Saturday, May 24, at 8 p.m., and Sunday, May 25, at 1:30 p.m., at Cornwall Town Hall. Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and $5 for children. For more information, call Bobbie Tyson at 860-672-6762.