Community Players put on a “Spooktacular” show
SBINSIDER| March 30th, 2023
If you have divvied up an inheritance with siblings, you have experience with things going awry-but usually over who gets what. The Spook Light Legacy play, written by Joh Mann, turns that idea on its head with two adult children doing their best to not become the new owner of the broken-down and haunted hotel. Further, the play has an unusual way of revealing the identity of its murderer, a twist that intrigued this writer and the guests at our table in the Mt. View Ballroom.
The play opens with an introduction and setup by the legacy owner, Dr. Cash Banker, performed by Mark Peterson, who is a dead ringer for Colonel Sander of chicken fame. Peterson does his part and then remains, seemingly as a real portrait above the fireplace, motionless until making further announcements regarding the play and its denouement.
The adult kids arrive and the parents (Havva and Gedda Goodrest) do their best to decide who should inherit the dilapidated and unwanted Spook Light Hotel. The play unfolds in the 2nd act over a family meal, and as the conflict mounts, the players bound about the stage and suddenly daughter Lizzy Goodrest keels over near the table. From the view of the audience, it is hard to tell what causes the apparent death of Lizzy. Using unique effects and a little stage magic, the killer is identified-but you have to attend the show to find out whom it is-we were sworn to secrecy as 4 more performances awaited the SaddleBrooke audience.
The players to be commended for their performances are Susan Sterling (resisting the obvious pun here) for her portrayal of wife Gedda Goodrest and Liz Houser who took on 4 parts, highlighted as the snarky and cheeky Swedish nurse, Heidi Seeki.
The play was directed by Shawne Cryderman with the help of the redoubtable Assistant Director Al Weigel. and produced by Connie Ward . The Community Circle Players usually does two shows per year, fall and spring. It is worth mentioning the food was very delectable, our table enjoying both the chicken parmigiana and beef meatballs with noodles.
