Whodunit has lots of laughs> `Three Murders’ is great fun

Fans of whodunits, especially those who like a little humor to spice up their murder and mayhem, will enjoy Winterport Open Stage’s version of “Three Murders and it’s only Monday.” The theater group ends its inaugural season with Pat Cook’s play about murder inside the Peaceful Pines Sanitarium.

Director Reed Farrar of Winterport has taken a group of local amateur actors and molded them into an enjoyable cast of characters who make this 2-hour-plus performance a chuckle-a-thon. These aren’t professionals, but they are good enough to make the slightest glitches slip by barely noticed.

Their effort is headed by Don Sleight in the role of the stereotypical 1930s gumshoe, Harry Monday. Sleight, who resembles stand-up comedian Larry Miller, couples witty delivery with straight-faced acting to keep the story moving and the laughs coming.

A pair of young actors also shine. Philip Bolin, as Larramore Mandrake, and Adam Sherwood, as Humphrey Hopkins, both seniors at Hampden Academy, show off their youthful acting ability. Their comic bits and stage confidence are a pleasure to watch.

Bolin first takes the stage in the bit part of the ventriloquist, Danny O’Donnell, one of the original murder victims. He then successfully switches into the role of Mandrake, a young pretentious actor who also ends up dead.

Bolin uses a few Jim Carreyesque facial contortions to portray the high-strung Mandrake, and his interaction with Sherwood’s Hopkins, Mandrake’s half-Indian brother, is natural and uncontrived. Hopkins has some of the best lines in the play, and Sherwood delivers them with appropriate timing and wit that makes him stand out.

Roland Bourre, as Dr. Morrissey, speaks stiffly and seems nervous during the early moments of the first act, but becomes more comfortable as the play progresses. During one of the more hilarious scenes, Morrissey convinces himself he is the next murder victim, and wearing an Army helmet, wildly waves a rifle at anybody and everybody on the stage.

Phyllis Kelley, as uptight lawyer Lilly Dramkean, effectively downplays her part, setting the scene for her radical transformation in the second act. Audience members should keep an eye out for Leslie H. Pellky as Rhea Tetley, who, with Kelley, contributes to the surprise ending.

The play itself is chock full of clues about who the murderer is, and Farrar has gone the extra mile to make sure other hints are available to audience members. In fact, a display room, called Red Beard’s Room after a character who is never seen, is located in the hallway just outside the cafeteria-theater. There the audience can view a setting and items that may help solve the mystery. The show’s program also contains an important clue for the observant.

Robert DesLauriers’ set and lighting conveys the homey and relaxed atmosphere of a sanitarium lounge during the 1930s. The set and props are substantial and realistic for a small theater company, and there is no scrimping on details. Even a telephone is appropriate for the period. Some of the second-act lighting, purposely dimmed to create a mood of mystery and suspense, still is too bright to adequately capture the ambience.

Audience members aren’t able to enjoy a true theater experience because the production is performed in the cafeteria of the Samuel Wagner Middle School. Nonetheless, the actors perform with such aplomb that it’s an enjoyable experience.

“Three Murders and it’s only Monday” will be staged 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday, March 31 and April 1, at the Samuel Wagner Middle School in Winterport.